White House hails bin Laden aide's capture
cnn.com
WASHINGTON (CNN) --
Calling it a "very serious blow
to al Qaeda," the White House
on Tuesday celebrated the
capture of one of Osama bin
Laden's key lieutenants but
refused to disclose where the
man is being held.
Abu Zubaydah, 30, is the most
senior al Qaeda member captured
since the September 11 attacks.
Sources had spoken of
Zubaydah's capture last week in
Pakistan, but Tuesday's
comments from White House
press secretary Ari Fleischer
marked the Bush administration's
first public confirmation on the
matter.
"We believe that one of the individuals captured by Pakistani
authorities in recent days is Abu Zubaydah, who as you know is a
key terrorist recruiter and operational planner and a member of
Osama bin Laden's inner circle," Fleischer said.
The suspect has been turned over to the United States by
Pakistan, a high-level U.S. source said. Another source said he is
no longer in Pakistan.
Pakistani police said Tuesday they had arrested six more Afghan
men in overnight raids in the eastern city of Lahore. All are
suspected of having links to bin Laden's al Qaeda terrorist
network.
Since Thursday, more than 50 people -- including Pakistanis,
Afghans and others -- have been taken into custody in raids in
Lahore and Faisalabad, according to the Pakistani Foreign
Ministry.
Zubaydah was captured last week in Faisalabad, and Pakistanis
fired at him while he was trying to flee, officials said.
"He was shot several times as he attempted to escape the raid in
the compound," Fleischer said. "He is currently receiving medical
attention. For security reasons, we are not going to discuss his
location. He will be interrogated about his knowledge of ongoing
plans to conduct terrorist activities."
U.S. officials said their top concern is getting information out of
him as quickly as possible. Officials said the man has not been co
operating so far.
Although he does not face criminal charges in the United States
and is not on the FBI's list of most wanted terrorists, he was one
of a dozen individuals listed on President Bush's September 24
executive order freezing assets of supporters of terrorism.
Zubaydah is charged in connection with a bomb plot in Jordan.
An expert at disguises?
Zubaydah is considered the operational
coordinator of the al Qaeda terrorist
network. For years, he has been in
charge of recruiting, training and travel
for al Qaeda, officials said.
His capture would be valuable since he
is suspected of continuing to plan
further terrorist attacks and of being
responsible for establishing al Qaeda
cells around the world.
His full name is Zayn al-Abidn
Muhammed Hasayn Abu Zubaydah.
He is of Palestinian heritage but was
born in Saudi Arabia, according to U.S.
officials.
He speaks English and is considered an
expert at disguises, skilled at remaining
out of sight for years at a time, U.S.
officials said.
Officials said establishing his identity has been difficult because
there are only a few known photos of Zubaydah. They said they
believe he has recently changed his hair and put on weight to
avoid being identified.
Linked to attempted 1999 attack
Ahmed Ressam, an Algerian convicted last year of plotting to
detonate a bomb at Los Angeles International Airport in 1999,
said during his trial that he had contacted Zubaydah when he
reached Pakistan.
"He is the person in charge of the camps," Ressam said
at the 2001 trial. "He receives young men from all countries. He
accepts you or rejects you. And he takes care of the expenses of
the camps. He makes arrangements for you when you travel
coming in or leaving."
An official said Zubaydah is third on the list of al Qaeda leaders
whom the United States would most like to have in custody. Bin
Laden is "No. 1," he said, followed by Ayman Zawahiri -- bin
Laden's deputy.
-- Islamabad Bureau Chief Ash-Har Quraishi, State Department
Correspondent Andrea Koppel, Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr
and Producer Phil Hirschkorn contributed to this report. |
