White House links Times Square bomb suspect, Pakistani Taliban
"It looks like he was working on behalf of the Pakistani Taliban," Obama counterterterrorism advsier John Brennan said Sunday on CNN. (Photo Credit: CNN)
Washington (CNN) - The suspect in the failed Times Square bombing was likely working with the Taliban movement in Pakistan, President Barack Obama's top terrorism adviser said Sunday.
John Brennan, the assistant to the president for counterterrorism and homeland security, told CNN's "State of the Union" that the ongoing investigation pointed to Faisal Shahzad having links to Tehrik-e-Taliban, known
as TTP.
"It looks like he was working on behalf of the Pakistani Taliban," Brennan said.
Watch: Brennan weighs in on Shahzad
The group, also known as the TTP, is "closely allied with al Qaeda" and has pledged to carry out attacks on other parts of the world, including the United States, Brennan said.
Updated: 4:55 p.m.
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Everyone so quickly rejected the Pakistani Taliban's initial claim of responsibility. They released their statement like 2 hours after the incident?
The Taliban have had one goal the past 130 years and that is to rid their country of foreign occupation! They were not called terrorists until we came into the picture. In Afghanistan and Pakistan they are called "Freedom Fighters."
First they fought the British for 100+ years and then the Russians. Now they are fighting us and I fear, and expect ,the same results for US. Defeat! When you kill civilians almost daily and cover it up or say, "We are sorry!" you can't win! We are creating more Taliban there and here. Look at what almost happened in New York!
I'm growing angry with our military and its "Gung Ho" at all costs! The Gulf War, the Iraq War and now "The Afghan War" Who is the biggest threat to the world?
You mean the Islamofascists don't love us now that the Obamessiah has apologized on behalf of America for everything from constipation to the Plague?
You mean it WASN'T just GWB they hated – you mean they really were telling the truth when they said they hate everything America is and stands for, like accomplishment, culture, education, and civil society?
You mean holding meetings with Islamic businessmen and stabbing Israel in the back was not sufficient to mollify them?
Who woulda thunk it? Not the Democrats, certainly!
Brennan also said that the administration had stopped terror in its tracks. The Fort Hood attack was not stopped. The xmas day attack and the times square attacks went off we were just lucky that the explosives did not work. I hope being lucky is not the administrations plan.
It's a matter of percentages. One of these times it will not be a bungled terrorist attack. We have been lucky lately.
The Campaigner-in-Chief is on the case! I feel so much safer now 🙂
When it all boils down to Washington has linked all attacks to the Muslims and for the sake of sanity dont no one say Timothy Mc Viegh the attempt ratio dosnt deserve his name to be involved .
Pres. Obama was exactly correct when he said over and over during the presidential campaign that the war on terror should have focussed on Afghanistan and Pakistan. That is where the real threat was and they were behind the 911 attack. By taking the focus off of these critical areas and instead putting trillions of dollars and so much manpower in Iraq, the real threats were allowed to flourish under the radar. It shows the collosal failure of the Bush-Cheney war on terror. Not only did 911 happen on their watch, for seven years they did not catch the real perpetrators and allowed the spread of the real enemies. History will look at this as a period of lost chances and squandered resources. Now it is up to Pres. Obama to solve this mess too. What a job he was given!