Shahzad has done a noble job, says Pak Taliban

The Pakistani Taliban on Thursday lauded the action of Faisal Shahzad, the Pakistani-American arrested for a botched car bombing in New York, but said he had no links to the banned militant group.

Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan spokesman Azam Tariq denied his group had any links to the suspect while praising his bravery.

"This is a noble job and we pray that all the Muslim youths should follow Faisal Shahzad. But he is not part of our network," Tariq was quoted as saying in a report posted on the website of CBS News.

Tariq also claimed the plot to carry out the bombing in New York City was "hatched by the US and its allies to trap Muslim and Pushtun youth in terrorist activities".

He vowed that the Pakistani Taliban would "launch attacks against the US and its allies with a new zeal and style".

Saying that the "US and its European allies are our target", Tariq claimed that activists had been sent to the US and other European countries and the Taliban would launch further attacks soon. He gave no details about specific targets.

In a video posted recently on the Internet, Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud had vowed to carry out attacks on major cities in the US to avenge the killing of militant commanders like his predecessor Baitullah Mehsud, who was killed in a US drone strike last year.