Pakistani Taliban to blame: U.S.

The White House on Sunday said terror suspect Faisal Shahzad, arrested for the failed Times Square bomb attempt, was working on behalf of the Pakistani Taliban, which has close links with Al-Qaeda.

It looks like he was working on behalf of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, the TTP, as the Pakistan Taliban. This is a group that is closely allied with Al-Qaeda.

They have been responsible for a number of attacks in Pakistan against Pakistani targets as well as U.S. targets, Deputy National Security Adviser John Brennan told the CNN in an interview.

…This is something that we’re taking very seriously, he said.

The investigation is ongoing. We are learning more and more every day, he said. The case is still involving, ongoing investigation. Mr. Shahzad is in custody. He is being cooperative as far as responding to our questions, he added.

He has trouble back and forth in Pakistan a number of times over the years. He returned to the United States in February. And it is again looking like the TTP was responsible for this attempt, that he had worked with the TTP over the past number of months when he was in Pakistan, he said.

He said it looks like that Shahzad was captured by the murderous rhetoric of Al-Qaeda and the TTP that looks at the United States as an enemy.

What we are trying to do is to determine now exactly who helped him, who worked with him and making sure that we are able to uncover and then to address successfully these individuals who are trying to carry out other attacks, he said.

Mr. Brennan said the TTP had been training with, operating with, planning attacks with Al-Qaeda for a number of years.

It was formed several years ago. It is dedicated to the same type of agenda that Al-Qaeda has, which is a murderous one, to kill innocent civilians. They have operated inside of Pakistan. They have pledged to carry out attacks in other areas of the world, including the United States here, he said.