A Saudi Arabian official posted in Washington has said Iran is several holding several  senior al Qaeda leaders, including one of Osama bin Laden's sons,  in 'safe  houses', according to Saudi Arabian official posted in Washington.

He said apart from Saad Bin Laden, who reportedly has become a big player in the outfit, Saif al-Adel, the terrorist outfit's military chief, Abu Musab al Zarqawi, a Jordanian-born terrorist believed to behind the murder of a US diplomat in Jordan and  Suleiman Abu Ghaith, a Kuwaiti-born al Qaeda spokesman were among those held by Iran.  

Besides, 'at least another 10 to 12 major al Qaeda fish', and other supporters of the outfit are in Iran, he said.

Iran -- which admits having Al qaeda leaders in custody but refuses to divulge names -- has not responded to a request by  Saudi Arabia to hand over any in the group who are Saudi citizens, said the official  who spoke on conditions of anonymity.  

According to CNN, the Saudi official went on to detail Saudi efforts to cooperate with the United States in the war on terrorism, pointing to the arrest Monday of 10 people who he claimed were part of a 'major cell' that was aimed at a British target. 

Agencies

The war on terror: complete coverage