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Pakistani connection to London plot?

Nirupama Subramanian

`LeT founder detained on a public order issue'

ISLAMABAD: The house arrest of Hafiz Saeed, founder of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and the head of the Jamaat-ud-Daawa was not linked to the alleged terrorist plot to blow up U.S-bound planes leaving British airports, a Pakistan official said on Saturday.

The timing of Mr. Saeed's house arrest, in the early hours of August 10, when British investigators swooped on suspects in London and Birmingham, led to speculation that the two were linked.

But Foreign Office spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said: "Absolutely no link. [Hafeez Saeed] has been detained on a public order issue," she said.

Interior minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao said on Saturday that Rashid Rauf, the only arrested suspect whose identity Pakistan has revealed, was produced in a court in the country, but did not say where or when. He said Mr. Rauf was arrested on the Afghan border a week ago.

Ms. Aslam declined to divulge any details, including how long Mr. Rauf had been in Pakistan and what his business here was.

He is reportedly the brother of Tayib Rauf, who was arrested in Birmingham. His interrogation by Pakistan officials plus an intercepted phone call by his Karachi contact to one of the alleged plotters in the U.K were the keys to foiling the plot.

The Dawn reported that police were investigating Mr. Rauf's links with Islamist militant groups. Four militant groups are on the radar of the investigators — two Pakistani outfits Laskhar-e-Taiba and Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, and two U.K-based groups, Al Mahajroon and Hizbul Tehrir.

Lashkar-e-Jhangvi is linked to Al Qaeda. According to the newspaper, the surveillance on Mr. Rauf began six months ago, and it was after his arrest that Pakistani investigators learnt of the plot to blow up 10 transatlantic flights.

Officials are still refusing to reveal the number of arrests in Pakistan. Unconfirmed reports said besides seven main arrests, Pakistan has arrested 10 others.

According to The Daily Times, three arrests were important. All three suspects are of Kashmiri origin. Two of them are British nationals while a third is a builder based in the Pakistan capital, the newspaper said. Pakistani officials had the three under surveillance for more than six months following a tip-off from the United Kingdom's National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit about massive money transfers from a British-based Islamic charity into accounts held by each of them, under the category of "earthquake relief."

The newspaper said that what set alarm bells ringing was that the money was transferred into individual accounts and not in the name of any organisation involved in relief work.

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