India turns to Iran for information on New Delhi terror attack

India calls in Iran's ambassador in New Delhi for meeting, informs him of identities of three Iranians suspected of involvement in February 13 attack in which wife of Israeli diplomat was wounded.

By Barak RavidTags: IranIran threat

 

India on Friday for the first time officially asked the Iranian government for information regarding three Iranian nationals suspected of involvement in the terrorist attack in New Delhi last month in which the wife of an Israeli diplomat was wounded.

The Indian Foreign Ministry announced that the Iranian ambassador in New Delhi had been summoned for a meeting on Friday during which he was informed about details of the investigation and the identities of the three Iranian nationals. The ambassador was told that an Indian court has issued arrest warrants for the three and Interpol has been contacted so that international arrest warrants can be issued.

	The scene of the attack in New Delhi, Feb. 13, 2012.
	Photo by: AP

"Investigations in the case are ongoing and no conclusions can be drawn at this stage," the Indian Foreign Ministry said. "We have informed the Iranian ambassador of these developments so as to seek the cooperation of the Iranian authorities in bringing those involved in this dastardly attack to justice."

New Dehli police issued an arrest warrant for the three suspects on Wednesday, and is planning to request international warrants from Interpol soon, according to the report in the newspaper India Today. The move marks the first time Iran has been officially linked to the attack.

According to the report, two of the suspects, Syed Ali Mehdi Sadr and Mohammad Reza Abolghasemi, arrived in New Delhi in early 2011 to conduct surveillance and collect information on their targets, the Israeli embassy and Israeli diplomats.

The pair later returned to Iran to brief the third suspect, Housan Afshar, who is believed to have actually carried out the attack. Afshar arrived in Delhi in late January of this year and checked into a hotel in the city center.

Immediately following the attack, Afshar took a flight to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on his way back to Iran. Police later located the motorcycle that was used in the attack, which belonged to an employee of the hotel where Afshar stayed.

Earlier this month, Delhi Police arrested Syed Mohammed Ahmed Kazmi, an Indian journalist suspected of helping the suspects gather information and meeting with Afshar at his home.

Tali Yehoshua-Koren, the wife of an Israeli diplomat, was moderately wounded in the February 13 attack.