Pakistani Taliban behind failed NY attack: US

The United States has evidence that the Pakistani Taliban was behind the failed attempt to detonate a car bomb in the heart of New York City, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said Sunday.

"We've now developed evidence that shows that the Pakistani Taliban was behind the attack," Holder said on ABC television's Sunday current affairs talk show "This Week."

"We know that they helped facilitate it. We know that they probably helped finance it, and that he was working at their direction," he said.

Faisal Shahzad, a Pakistani born U.S. citizen, was pulled off a plane to Dubai and arrested Monday for allegedly leaving a sport utility vehicle rigged to explode in New York's Times Square just over a week ago.

Holder's comments came as the New York Times reported that the United States warned Pakistan it must crack down on Islamic extremists or face severe consequences.

General Stanley McChrystal, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, urged Pakistan's General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani in Islamabad on Friday to quickly begin a military offensive against the Pakistani Taliban and al-Qaeda in North Waziristan.

John Brennan, the White House deputy national security adviser, echoed Holder's charges, pointing the finger at the Pakistani Taliban in an interview with CNN.

We know that they helped facilitate it. We know that they probably helped finance it, and that he was working at their direction

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder

Pressure mounts on Pakistan

Meanwhile, suspected U.S. missiles killed 10 people in a militant-controlled region close to the Afghan border Sunday, the first such strike since an alleged Pakistani-trained extremist was accused of a failed Times Square attack.

Last week's attempted car bombing in New York City has added to pressure on Pakistan to crack down on al-Qaida and Taliban militants who have long had safe havens along the Afghan border. Top U.S. officials said Sunday they believe the Pakistani Taliban directed the plot.

Shahzad has allegedly told investigators he received explosives training in the lawless Waziristan area. al-Qaida leaders and jihadis from all over the world congregate in the region, as well as members of the Pakistani Taliban.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Washington expects more cooperation from Pakistan in fighting terrorism and warned of "severe consequences" if an attack on U.S. soil were traced back to the South Asian country.

Her comments mark something of a change in America's public stance toward Pakistan, which in recent months has been characterized by praise, not criticism. She made the remarks in an interview with CBS television's "60 Minutes" that were to be broadcast later Sunday.