ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday distanced itself from the issue of the extradition to India of Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a suspect in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, saying he was a Canadian national who had not renewed his Pakistani origin documents in the past two decades.
New Delhi accuses Rana, 64, of being a member of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), or the Army of the Pure, a group blamed by India and the United States for the four-day Mumbai siege in which 160 people, including Americans and other foreigners, were killed in 2008. Rana is accused of assisting his friend David Coleman Headley who was sentenced to 35 years in a US prison after pleading guilty to aiding LeT militants and scouting target locations in Mumbai.
Pakistan has always denied official complicity in the Mumbai attacks.
“On the Tahawwur Rana issue, we have conveyed our position regarding his Canadian nationality,” Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said in reply to a question during a weekly media briefing.
“As far as our record indicates, he did not even apply for renewal for his Pakistani origin documents for the last two decades …I reiterate the position that we will give further updates in due course.”
In February, US President Donald Trump announced the extradition of Rana, calling him “one of the very evil people in the world.”
The US Supreme Court rejected Rana’s plea in February to remain in the country, where he was serving a sentence for planning another LeT-linked attack.
According to a Reuters report, Rana, a former Pakistan Army doctor, immigrated to Canada in 1997 before moving to Chicago to set up businesses. He was arrested by US authorities in 2009, a year after the Mumbai attacks.
In 2013, a US court acquitted him of conspiring in the Mumbai attacks but sentenced him to 14 years for plotting an attack on the Jyllands-Posten newspaper office in Denmark, which had published blasphemous caricatures of the Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him).
Media has reported that Rana and Headley knew each other from boarding school days in Pakistan. Headley testified as a witness at Rana’s trial, claiming he used Rana’s immigration services business as a cover to scout targets in India.
Rana admitted to visiting Mumbai before the attacks and staying at the luxury Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, which became the focal point of the deadly siege. However, he denied any involvement in the conspiracy.
Pakistan distances itself from extradition to India of 2008 Mumbai attacks’ suspect
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Pakistan distances itself from extradition to India of 2008 Mumbai attacks’ suspect
- Foreign office says Tahawwur Hussain Rana was Canadian, had not renewed Pakistani origin documents in decades
- 64-year-old is accused of being in LeT group, planning four-day Mumbai siege in which 160 people were killed in 2008
Pakistan seeks wider access to Canadian market as both sides want deeper agricultural cooperation
- Islamabad urges faster certification for canola and halal products in a bid to expand agricultural exports
- Canada pledges collaboration on pest management, invites Pakistan to the Canada Crops Convention
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday pressed for improved access to Canadian agricultural markets and faster certification procedures for key exports as Islamabad looks to modernize its climate-strained farm sector and resolve long-standing barriers to trade, according to an official statement.
The push comes as Pakistan, a largely agricultural economy, faces mounting challenges from erratic weather patterns, including floods, droughts and heatwaves, which have hurt crop yields and raised food security concerns. Islamabad has increasingly sought foreign partnerships and training to upgrade farm technology, while pursuing export-oriented growth to diversify markets for mangoes, rice, kinnow, dates and halal meat.
Federal Minister for National Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain and Canadian High Commissioner Tarik Ali Khan met to discuss “strengthening bilateral collaboration in agriculture, enhancing market access for key commodities, and advancing ongoing phytosanitary and technical cooperation,” according to the statement.
“Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain stressed the importance of resolving market access challenges to ensure uninterrupted trade in priority commodities, particularly canola, which constitutes Pakistan’s major agricultural import from Canada," it continued. "He highlighted that Pakistan seeks robust and timely certification and registration processes to facilitate predictable canola imports."
"The Minister emphasized that Pakistan is eager to strengthen its halal export footprint in Canada and sought CFIA’s [Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s] support in accelerating certification procedures for halal gelatin, casings, and value-added poultry," it added.
High Commissioner Khan acknowledged Pakistan’s concerns, the statement said, and assured Hussain of Ottawa’s readiness to deepen technical collaboration.
He also briefed the minister on Canada’s pest management systems and grain supply chain controls, adding that his country looked forward to facilitating Pakistan’s plant protection team during an upcoming systems-verification visit.
Khan also invited Pakistani officials to the Canada Crops Convention in April 2026 and confirmed participation in the Pakistan Edible Oil Conference, reaffirming that “Canada views Pakistan as a priority partner in the region.”
Hussain proposed forming a joint working group to maintain momentum on technical discussions and regulatory issues as both officials agreed to strengthen agricultural cooperation.
