WASHINGTON, Dec 13: More than 400 Al Qaeda activists have been arrested in Pakistan since October 2001, said Ambassador Jehangir Qazi while elaborating Pakistan’s role in the war against terrorism.

He did not say where the 422 suspected operatives were arrested from, but media reports have suggested that most arrests were made in the country’s tribal belt and provinces bordering Afghanistan.

“We have been instrumental, the Pakistan intelligence agencies — the Pakistan Frontier Constabulary — in apprehending more than 400 suspected members of the Al Qaeda or other extremist groups,” the ambassador told a briefing at the National Press Club in Washington on Thursday.

He denied media reports that Pakistan had forced the United States to include members of its military intelligence ISI in all raiding parties that the FBI sets up in Pakistan.

“These are all speculations. There are only a handful of US agency officials in Pakistan, and all the operations are conducted by the security forces and intelligence agencies of Pakistan itself,” he added.

The ambassador also rejected reports that Pakistani courts had released some Al Qaeda operatives arrested by the FBI and Pakistani agencies for lack of evidence.

“People released by the courts were associated with religious groups (who operate inside Pakistan) and none of them belonged to Al Qaeda,” said Qazi.

Pakistani courts have recently released for lack of evidence a number of people arrested on terrorist charges. Those released include Azam Tariq, a man Pakistani police blame for carrying out terrorist attacks on the country’s Shia religious minority. Hundreds of Shias have been killed in these attacks.

After his release by a local court, Tariq went on to win the Oct 10 parliamentary elections and is now a member of parliament. The Pakistani government has challenged his election in a high court. Also released was Hafiz Saeed, leader of the Lashkar-i-Tayyaba group, which is blamed for carrying out terrorist attacks inside India.

“After a certain period if you don’t have enough evidence to prefer charges against people suspected of certain activities which are illegal, then you are bound ... to release such people,” the ambassador said while commenting on these releases.

Replying to a question about the funeral prayer of Aimal Kasi who was executed last month in Virginia for killing two CIA employees, the ambassador said a large turnout for the funeral does not show that the Pakistanis condone what he did. “A resonance of sympathy was generated by the manner in which he went to his death, reciting the kalimah.”

The ambassador described the Karzai regime as “the best government Afghanistan could have” and said that Pakistan will continue to extend full support to Karzai and his government.