June 29, 2002	Saturday	Rabi-us-Sani 17, 1423

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NEW YORK, June 28: Several Pakistanis were detained on Thursday on immigration charges as the FBI and US immigration department officials launched a joint investigation questioning about 70 “illegal immigrants,” mostly Pakistanis, working in jewellery stores across the United States.

The US officials said the operation began on Wednesday and that some of those questioned were detained for immigration violations, they said.

The officials said the investigation continued and they declined to provide additional details, but they minimized the importance of the case. “It’s not much. It’s not earthshaking,” one official said

However, Pakistan embassy officials said on Friday that they will get in touch with US authorities to pin down the reason for such an operation.

“Although no one has complained so far but we don’t want to see Pakistanis falling into another maze of detentions and jails,” said one officials.