Islamabad: A team of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is expected to visit Pakistan next week to follow-up the findings of the probe conducted by Pakistani authorities into the Mumbai terror attacks.
The visit by the seven-member FBI team has been cleared by the Foreign Office, Pakistani diplomatic sources said in Islamabad on Friday.
The team will interact with Pakistani law enforcement officials to discuss the findings of their probe into the Mumbai incident, sources said.
The FBI is also expected to question the six suspects detained by Pakistani authorities in connection with the attacks, the sources said.
These suspects include Lashker-e-Toiba operatives Zaki-ur Rehman Lakhvi, Zarar Shah and Hamad Amin Sadiq.
Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik had last week said Pakistani authorities had filed formal charges against nine suspects, including Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone terrorist captured in India for the attacks.
He said six of the eight other suspects had been detained while two are still at large.
Malik had also acknowledged that part of the conspiracy behind the Mumbai incident was hatched on Pakistani soil. The FBI has played a key behind-the-scenes role in the sharing of information uncovered by Indian and Pakistani investigators.
The FBI also has a sizeable presence in the US Embassy in Islamabad and it is believed that some of its officials have conducted preliminary inquiries in Pakistan, including in Kasab's village of Faridkot in Punjab province.
Islamabad last week handed over to New Delhi the findings of its probe conducted on the basis of information provided in the Indian dossier on the Mumbai attacks.
Pakistan's nine-page response includes the findings of its probe and 30 questions seeking information from India.
Diplomatic sources said the information provided in the Indian dossier had been used by Pakistani security agencies to round up suspects and gather vital evidence.
In one case, GPS coordinates and phone numbers provided in the dossier helped Pakistani sleuths locate two houses in Karachi that were used by the attackers.
Both these houses were located after extensive surveillance and in one of them, officials found a dinghy that was used by attackers for training at sea, the sources said.
A judge has so far remanded four of the suspects Lakhvi, Shah, Sadiq and Abu al Qama to the custody of the Federal Investigation Agency till March 3.
While seeking their remand, police officials and a special public prosecutor told the judge that they were all active members of the LeT. The officials also told the judge that they were all involved in the Mumbai attacks and Lakhvi was their commander.
All four men have been charged under the Anti-Terrorism Act, Pakistan Penal Code and Prevention of Electronic Crimes Ordinance.
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