May 30, 2002	Thursday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 17,1423

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PESHAWAR, May 29: In a crackdown on suspected militants having links with Al-Qaeda organization, the CID officials picked up more than 12 Arabs during raids on different houses in the posh Hayatabad and University Town areas here on Wednesday.

The CID officials were accompanied by some FBI men and members of another intelligence agency. The crackdown was launched amid reports that members and sympathizers of Al-Qaeda men had crossed into Pakistan following the US-led operation in Afghanistan.

Pakistani troops, assisted by the US communication experts, raided several places in the north and south Waziristan in their hunt for the militants.

A local official said that the 12 Arabs rounded up on Wednesday possessed valid documents.

An eyewitness told Dawn that the detainees were immediately handed over to the American officials who took them to an undisclosed destination for interrogation. “The police were told to stay away when the Americans caught hold of a suspect, forced him into a four-wheeler and drove away”, the witness said.

Those picked up included a Jordanian, Hussain Khalil, working with the Kuwaiti-funded Afghan Support Committee and three Sudanese, Hamidul Mansoor, Mohammed Ali Hazli and Arshid Hassan Ahmad.

Three of the detainees,Mohammed from Somalia, Manhal Alhari from Syria and Fathi Boucetta from Algeria, were serving with the Madressah Khubaib, run by the Saudi Red Crescent Society.

The others were three Palestinians, Hassan, Abdullah and Mohammed, Mohammed Haris, a Kuwaiti citizen and Saleem, an Iraqi national.

In a separate raid, police arrested two Algerians from a house in Kundarh Aftiazi village on Wednesday.

One of the detainee was Mustafa alias Abu Abdullah, who lived with his father-in-law, and his Algerian guest whose name could not be ascertained. Some documents, audio-video material and US currency were seized during the raid.