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Pakistani Muslim Leader Detained by Intelligence
ISLAMABAD, Oct 6 (IslamOnline) - Pakistani intelligence agencies have taken Fazlur Rehman Khalil, Secretary General of Harkat-ul-Mujahiddin (HUM), into custody and moved him to an unknown place, on suspicion of having close links with Osama bin Laden, intelligence officials said Saturday.
The intelligence officials said that the handing over of Khalil to the U.S. could not be ruled out, however, no definitive decision had so far been taken in this regard.
The official refused to comment on whether or not the U.S. had asked for the handing over of the Harkat leader.
Secret agencies have also launched a hunt to arrest Farooq Kashmiri, the president of HUM, who is reported to have gone underground after U.S. agencies linked his organization with attacks on New York and Washington on September 11th, sources said.
A spokesman for the movement, Ammar Mehdi, said that Fazl had disappeared last week and "till today we have no information about his whereabouts."
"We suspect that he has been arrested by the security agencies. Our organization leaders are worried about his disappearance," he said adding, " We have continuously been calling on his mobile phone, but there has been no response."
Pakistan's military government seized HUM bank accounts two weeks ago, following U.S. steps to freeze the accounts and assets of 27 organizations they labeled "terrorists".
The HUM, previously known as the Harkat-ul-Ansar, operates primarily in Kashmir but the State Department in its Global Terrorism Report of 2000, issued earlier this year, said that HUM leader Farooq Kashmiri was linked to bin Laden and signed his
fatwa (religious decree) in February 1998 calling for attacks on American and Western interests.
The HUM is also accused of running training camps for fighters in eastern Afghanistan.
The HUM is considered to be a supporter of bin Laden, however, it denies any involvement in "terrorist" activities.
Fifteen organizations and 12 individuals, including bin Laden and HUM, are named in the list attached to the U.S. president's executive order issued two weeks ago freezing their assets in the U.S. and asking foreign banks to do the same.
The fresh issuance of the list of terrorist organizations was necessary as the initial designation of these groups made in 1977 and 1999 is due to expire Monday.
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