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Al-Libbi managed Binny's couriers
EFLThe arrest of Abu Farraj al-Libbi, a Libyan who is also wanted in two attempts to assassinate Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, is seen by U.S. officials as significant because of his alleged control over the daily operations of al-Qaida. President Bush called the arrest a "critical victory in the war on terrorism." In Pakistan, Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said that "this arrest gives us a lot of tips, and I can only say that our security agencies are on the right track" in the search for bin Laden. U.S. officials tell NBC that al-Libbi might know at least the general whereabouts of bin Laden because part of his responsibility was to manage the courier networks delivering messages, video and audiotapes. According to U.S. officials, al-Libbi is thought to have become al-Qaida's operations commander after the capture of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in March 2003. Mohammed was later handed over to U.S. custody and his whereabouts are unknown. The operations commander is thought to be third in line at al-Qaida after bin Laden and al-Zawahiri. Al-Libbi is also alleged to have earlier been Mohammed's deputy and to have had a role in planning the Sept. 11 attacks. Al-Libbi was arrested earlier this week, Ahmed said, but he would provide no details on where al-Libbi was captured or where he is being held. But three Pakistani intelligence sources said al-Libbi was one of two foreigners arrested Monday after a firefight on the outskirts of Mardan, 30 miles north of Peshawar, capital of the deeply conservative North West Frontier Province. One of the officials said 11 more terror suspects — including three Uzbeks, an Afghan and seven Pakistanis — were arrested before dawn Wednesday in the Bajor tribal region. The official would not say what prompted authorities to launch the raid or whether it was linked to al-Libbi's capture. The intelligence officials said authorities were led to al-Libbi's hideout by a tip that foreigners had been spotted in the area. The suspect was held overnight at a military facility in Mardan, then transferred by helicopter to the capital, Islamabad, the officials said. Al-Libbi reportedly spent time in South Waziristan, a tribal region along the border with Afghanistan that is considered a likely hideout for bin Laden. But he fled following a series of military operations in the area last year. Authorities had said privately in recent weeks that they believed they were zeroing in on his location. Posted by: Dan Darling 2005-05-04 |
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