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Summary Pakistani intelligence officers working with CIA arrested three members of al-Qaida.
Among them is a top operative believed to have been tasked by Osama bin Laden with targeting American economic interests around the world, Pakistan Army said Monday.Younis al-Mauritanis arrest five days before the 10-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks was seen as a blow to al-Qaidas central leadership in Pakistan, further degrading its ability to mount terrorist attacks abroad. The terrorist organisation has seen its senior ranks thinned since Osama bin Laden was killed May 2 along with Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, the groups No.2, in a CIA missile strike last month.The Pakistani military said the arrests took place near the Afghan border in the south-western city of Quetta, long known as a base for militants.The capture of an al-Qaida militant inside Pakistan has become rare in recent years: most targets of CIA operations in the country have been killed by drone aircraft in a relentless series of operations launched in 2008.This operation was planned and conducted with technical assistance of United State Intelligence Agencies with whom Inter-Services Intelligence has a strong, historic intelligence relationship. Both Pakistan and United States Intelligence agencies continue to work closely together to enhance security of their respective nations, the military said in a written statement.The statement said al-Mauritani was mainly responsible for al-Qaidas international operations and was tasked by bin Laden with hitting targets of economic importance in America, Europe and Australia. It said he was planning to target U.S. economic interests including gas and oil pipelines, power generating dams and oil tankers by using explosive-laden speed boats in international waters.It named the other two detainees as Abdul-Ghaffar al-Shami and Messara al-Shami.U.S. officials were not immediately available for comment. The U.S. has said it doesnt know of any specific al-Qaida plot to attack the U.S. ahead of Sept. 11.Since the 2001 attacks, Pakistans spy agency has cooperated with the CIA to arrest scores of al-Qaida suspects, most of whom were handed over to the United States.
