The United States would push Pakistan for securing the conviction of Hafiz Saeed, the Mumbai attack mastermind, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Monday, adding that country has not done as much as US and India wanted it to fight terrorism.
Clinton also said the US will go after the militant groups in Pakistan and believed that the chief of Al Qaeda Ayman al-Zawahiri, an Egyptian cleric who inherited the leadership from Osama bin Laden, was in that country.
The US' top diplomat was speaking at an interactive session held at the La Martiniere School for Girls here on the second day of her three-day visit to India.
Clinton said she was "well aware that there has not yet been the steps taken by the Pakistani government" that could help in securing Saeed's conviction.
"We're going to be pushing that point. So it's a way of raising the visibility and pointing out to those who are associated with him that there is a cost for that," Clinton said of the $10 million reward offer on Saeed's head. She said the reward was authorised by her.
The US had last month offered a $10 million reward for information leading to the conviction of Saeed.
"You have to go after those who are trying to kill you. You have to be focussed on that...We want everybody who is associated with that(Mumbai attack) brought to justice. And it may take longer than any one of us like. But we are going to be standing with you and trying to make that happen," Clinton said in comments that was greeted with applause from the assembled audience.
"We are all aware that Pakistan has not done as much as US and India wanted to fight terrorism," she added.
Asked what was the next big target of the US after Laden, Clinton said, "We want to disable Al Qaeda. We have made lots of progress."
"There are several significant leaders still on the run. Zawahiri, who inherited the leadership from Bin Laden is somewhere, we believe, in Pakistan, We want to go after them."
Clinton also noted that Pakistan is a victim of terrorism. "Pakistan has lost far more people than India and US. Thirty thousand lives have been lost in Pakistan in terrorist attacks. It is in their interest that Pakistan should deal with the problem of terrorism," she said.
