ROUNDUP : India-Pakistan tensions rise over Mumbai attacks

New Delhi - Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated on Wednesday with New Delhi warning that it would 'act decisively' to protect its citizens, saying the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks that claimed 171 lives had come from Pakistan. 'The government of India is determined to act decisively to protect the territorial integrity of India and the right of our citizens to a peaceful life with all means at our disposal,' India's External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said at a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in New Delhi. Mukherjee in his discussions with Rice had informed her that was 'no doubt that the attacks were perpetrated by individuals who came from Pakistan and whose controllers are in Pakistan'. New Delhi has mounted pressure on Islamabad to act against militant outfits operating on its territory after Indian security agencies said the gunmen in the Mumbai attack belonged to Lashkar-e- Taiba, an Islamic militant group based in Pakistan. Meanwhile, Rice called on Pakistan to take 'direct and tough action' against the militants and said Islamabad had a 'special responsibility' to cooperate in the investigations to get the perpetrators of Mumbai to justice. 'Pakistan has to act transparently, fully and urgently,' Rice said adding that that 'Americans understand the feelings and strong demands' in India to capture the attackers. Referring to Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari's contention in an interview that the militants were stateless operators in the region, Rice said: 'The fact is that sometimes non-state actors operate from the confines of the state...They are still a matter of your responsibility if it somehow relates to your territory.' She said that President Zardari had given an assurance to cooperate in the investigations and Washington expected that the pledges would be fulfilled. Rice's visit to India is part of Washington's diplomatic efforts to ease tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours after the Mumbai attacks. She was scheduled to visit Pakistan for a few hours on Thursday. Meanwhile, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen, who was also visiting Pakistan, was to meet top Indian defence officials on Thursday. The US is concerned about the impact of tensions on the war on terrorism. Pakistani officials had earlier warned that heightened tensions with India could force Islamabad to withdraw troops from the Afghan front to the borders with India. Tensions are increasing each day. On Monday, India summoned the Pakistan envoy to New Delhi, Shahid Malik and demanded action against militant outfits on its soil that had targeted India. Indian authorities also gave a list of 20 suspected fugitives to Pakistani envoy in India demanding their repatriation. The list included Masood Azhar, a leader of the Islamic militant Jaish-e- Mohammed group, and Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Mohammed Saeed. On Wednesday, United Progressive Alliance chairwoman Sonia Gandhi said India's moves toward peace with Pakistan should not be construed a weakness. 'We have taken several steps to have a friendly and brotherly relationship with our neighbours. We are extending the hand of friendship to our neighbours, but that should not be considered as our weakness'. 'We will never bow before terrorism. We will give a befitting reply,' she told an election rally in India-administered Kashmir. Zardari in an interview with CNN meanwhile denied Pakistan's involvement in the attacks and refused to extradite 20 suspects identified in India's list, saying they would be tried in Pakistan if New Delhi provided hard evidence. In a related development on Wednesday, UN Secretary General Ban ki-moon made a telephone call to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and underscored the need for 'full cooperation' by all to ensure those behind the attack were caught. Ban expressed determination to provide a lead role for the UN in dealing with the global menace of terrorism, while commending the courage and resilience shown by government and people of India. According to Indian police, 171 people were killed and more than 300 injured as the terrorists fired automatic weapons and lobbed grenades in chosen locations across south Mumbai, including two posh hotels, the city's main railway station and a Jewish centre in the attacks beginning Wednesday night. At least 28 foreigners were killed in the multiple strikes in Mumbai that continued till Saturday when Indian forces shot dead three militants in a hotel. One of the gunmen was captured alive and was identified to be belonging to the Pakistani province of Punjab. The police which had put the toll initially at 188, revised the figure saying there was some duplication in counting bodies.