Islamabad: Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the radical cleric and US-wanted terror suspect implicated in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, was taken into custody just days ahead of Prime Minister Imran Khan's trip to Washington. The arrest came a day after Pakistan opened its airspace for flights to and from India. Saeed was taken into custody in Punjab province while traveling from the eastern city of Lahore to the city of Gujranwala, according to counter terrorism official Mohammad Shafiq.
Saeed is blamed to be the so-called 'mastermind' behind Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people. His charity organizations, Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and Falah-e-Insaniat, are alleged fronts for Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) armed group. The United States has offered a $10 million reward for Saeed's arrest and Washington recently stepped up pressure on Islamabad to crack down on terror groups.
In response, Pakistan registered over a dozen cases against Saeed and several of his associates, accusing them of funding militant groups through charities and leading to recent arrest. Prime Minister Khan is to leave for Washington over the weekend on his first official visit to the United States as premier.
After his arrest, Saeed was taken before a judge and was ordered held in jail until the next hearing, Shafiq said. In Pakistan, a suspect can be free on bail pending investigation and trial. Saeed's spokesman Nadim Awan denounced the arrest and said the cleric had dissociated himself from Lashker-e-Taiba in 2001 and has had no links with the organization since then. Lashker-e-Taiba was banned in 2002. Awan said they would challenge Saeed's arrest before a higher court.
Saeed had been arrested in the past and set free many times, including after being detained in the aftermath of the November 2008 Mumbai attack. He lived freely in Pakistan until he was booked along with 12 accomplices for terror funding. He is facing 23 terror-related cases in Pakistan. In recent months, the government also took over schools, mosques, seminaries and all properties linked to Saeed's charities and froze their assets.
Pakistan is currently on the Financial Action Task Force's grey list, denoting its status as a haven for money laundering. It has until October to avoid black listing.
