NEW DELHI, Feb. 17 (UPI) -- A previously unknown militant group from Pakistan claimed responsibility for a deadly blast in the western Indian city of Pune, officials said.
A man claiming to be a representative of the previously unknown Lashkar-e-Toiba al-Alam phoned the Indian news agency The Hindu to claim responsibility for the Saturday attack.
A weekend attack at an area restaurant killed at least nine people and wounded 57 others in the first major terrorist strike in India since the November 2008 attacks in Mumbai.
The spokesman, using the name Abu Jindal, said the splinter group carried out the attack against India because New Delhi refused to discuss the issue of Kashmir during upcoming talks with Islamabad.
Islamabad and New Delhi traded barbs recently over skirmishes associated with the disputed region of Kashmir. Pakistani paramilitary forces in January accused Indian troops of opening fire on their positions in Lahore using automatic weapons. India denied the allegations.
The spokesman said he was calling from tribal regions in North Waziristan. The Hindu said the number he used originated from the tribal provinces but returned calls were unanswered.
New Delhi terrorism experts told the news agency there is no information on Lashkar-e-Toiba al-Alam. The caller said the group broke off from Lashkar-e-Toiba, which was linked to the 2008 attacks in Mumbai, because LeT was taking orders from Pakistani intelligence agencies.
