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Rediff.com  » News » Suspected German Al Qaeda member nabbed outside N Waziristan

Suspected German Al Qaeda member nabbed outside N Waziristan

By A Muhammad
June 22, 2010 13:21 IST
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A suspected German Al Qaeda operative, donning a woman's burqa to evade security dragnet was nabbed by police as he was about to whisk away from Pakistan's militant heartland close to border with Afghanistan.

The 27-year-old German national, later identified as Rami Mackenzie, was allegedly an expert in making suicide vests and was wanted by German authorities for links with extremists. He was clad in a burqa which covered his face at the time of the arrest.

The German was trying to make his getaway in a vehicle alongwith a local man and his young daughter when he was detained at a checkpoint in Bannu district, which borders North Waziristan.

The US and NATO intelligence agencies have a list of their nationals whom they suspect to be hiding with Al Qaeda and Taliban militants in their sanctuaries close to the Afghan border.

The German national was found to be travelling on a fake Pakistani passport. Security officials said the German national was arrested by a joint team of local police and army personnel at a security check post outside Bannu.

The German national and the two tribesmen were handed over to intelligence agencies. North Waziristan is considered a sanctuary for Al Qaeda and taliban elements, including foreign fighters, and has been repeatedly targeted by US drones since the beginning of this year.

There have been several instances in past years of youths from Western nations travelling to Pakistan's tribal belt to join militant groups. Some of these youths were trained to carry out terrorist attacks once they returned home. Foreigners are usually not allowed to visit Bannu, Waziristan and other parts of Pakistan that border Afghanistan.

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