Faisal Shahzad, an American civilian of Pakistani origin, who has been accused of plotting last week's failed Times Square bombing, is said to be of Kashmiri descent, sources close to the investigations have revealed.

Sources privy to the probe said 30-year old Shahzad had been living in the US for quite some time and had renewed his Pakistani passport in March 2000 and by 2005 was in the process of getting a 'green card', i.e. a permanent resident status of the United States.