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Binalshibh
allegedly challenged the U.S. authorities to find him
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KARACHI,
September 14 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - A man arrested after
a shootout in Karachi this week is Ramzi Binalshibh, an alleged prime
suspect in the September 11 attacks on the United States, a senior
Pakistani government official confirmed Saturday, September 14, 2002.
The
official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Binalshibh is
a Yemeni national, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Asked
whether he is still in Pakistan or has been flown out of the country,
the official said: "I am not aware of his whereabouts."
U.S.
government sources in Washington, for their part, said earlier
Binalshibh was arrested Wednesday, September 11, in a raid on an
apartment in Karachi.
They
said he was now in U.S. custody in an undisclosed location.
Binalshibh,
who recently claimed to have been one of the organizers in the attack,
was captured earlier this week after a four-hour gun battle at a
Karachi house, according to BBC's online news service.
Binalshibh,
said to have shared a flat with alleged hijackers' ringleader Mohammed
Atta, is on the FBI's most wanted list and has a $25m bounty on his
head.
"It's
a very sensitive issue," said one U.S. official, BBC reported.
More
details are expected to be announced this weekend.
Binalshibh,
30, was detained after the house where he was staying was raided by
Pakistani police commandos, supported by U.S. intelligence officers.
The
police surrounded a building housing a number of suspected al-Qaeda
militants.
When
the police stormed the flat, a gunfight broke out, which spilled out
on to nearby rooftops.
Two
suspects were killed, and the remaining five surrendered, including
Binalshibh.
Six
police officers were injured, two of them critically.
U.S.
officials said that no Americans were wounded during the operation.
The
arrest is considered an achievement for the U.S. investigation.
Binalshibh
allegedly challenged the U.S. authorities to find him, in an interview
for the Qatar-based TV network al-Jazeera Thursday, September 12.
However, some sources doubted the voice on al-Jazeera belonged to the
Yemeni militant.
Binalshibh
is often described as the "20th hijacker", and is believed
to have wanted to take part in the attacks.
Despite
enrolling at a U.S. flying school he was refused a visa at least four
times.
Had
he been allowed into the country, it is thought he would have been on
United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed into a field in Pennsylvania.
Instead,
he reportedly handled the logistics and financial matters for the
hijackers.
According
to German investigators, he posed in e-mails as Atta's girlfriend in
Germany when the two communicated through the internet.
Along
with Khaled Sheikh Mohammed, said to be the head of the al-Qaeda
military committee, he explained how the group operated and how the
9/11 attacks were planned.
Germany
also issued a warrant for Binalshibh's arrest for membership of a
terrorist organization.
Pakistani
President Pervez Musharraf said in an interview with CNN Friday night
that those captured in the raid included eight Yemenis, one Egyptian
and one Saudi, according to New York Times.
American
officials would not say whether he is now talking with investigators.
