Kolkata attack 'suspects' killed

Guards patrol the American Center in Kolkata

NEW DELHI, India -- Two Pakistanis have been killed in a shootout with Indian police probing last week's attack on a U.S. government building in the eastern city of Kolkata.

The men died when police circled their hideout in the eastern state of Jharkhand Monday, in a dawn raid that officials have described as a "breakthrough" in the hunt for the attackers.

Indian Home Secretary Kamal Pande told reporters at a Delhi press conference that one of the men "gave a statement before dying," admitting to the center attack.

"Further investigations are being carried out but there is hardly any doubt now about the role of Pakistani nationals and Pak-based terrorist tanzeems [groups] in this case," Pande said.

Police recovered an AK-47 rifle they said was used in the Kolkata shooting, Pande also said.

More than 50 people, mostly Indian nationals, have been detained in connection with the attack, which left four police officers dead and 20 other people injured.

No American staff were in the complex at the time two gunmen on motorcycles opened fire at guards outside the center in Kolkata on January 22.

Pakistan links

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The Indian government has softened its official stance on the Kolkata attack, calling it a "criminal incident" rather than an act of terrorism after the U.S. was unwilling to categorize it as such.

This contradicted earlier comments from the home ministry that said that the strike was linked to Pakistan's intelligence agency, accusations that Islamabad denied.

Indian officials on Monday identified the dead men as Mohammed Zahid and Mohammed Salim and said they had confessed to being members of the outlawed Pakistani-based guerilla group, Lashkar-e-Taiba.

The shooting of the two suspects comes as India and Pakistan trade border fire in the disputed region of Kashmir.

Both sides have massed hundreds of thousands of troops along their shared border as tensions remain high after a suicide attack on parliament in New Delhi in December.

Adding fuel to the fire, India on Friday tested a nuclear-capable ballistic missile.

The test sparked condemnation from Pakistan, which said the firing was ill-timed given the bristling tensions between the two foes.

Dialog, friendship

Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee said on Sunday that India wanted friendship with all countries, including Pakistan, but that would not be possible as long as it was the target of terrorism, Reuters news agency reported.

Vajpayee's statement followed a message from Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf on India's Republic Day, saying he wanted them to become good neighbors and was ready for dialog with India.

India has said that it will wait and see whether Musharraf delivers on his promise to clamp down on religious extremism and eradicate 'cross border terrorism' before reducing its forces on the border.

India and Pakistan have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir since their independence in 1947.