Pakistan arrests 'close associate' of Osama Bin Laden

LAHORE - Pakistani authorities said Friday they had arrested a "close associate" of Al-Qaeda founder and mastermind of the 9/11 attacks Osama Bin Laden.

Counter-terrorism officials in the most populous province of Punjab swooped in on Amin Ul-Haq in the city of Gujrat, accusing him of planning "sabotage activities" and seeking to "target important installations" in the country.

"The arrest of Amin Ul-Haq is a major victory in the ongoing efforts to combat terrorism in Pakistan and worldwide," a statement from Punjab's Counter Terrorism Department said.

He was listed by the United States, the European Union and the United Nations as an associate of Al-Qaeda and Bin Laden, the head of Punjab's counter-terrorism department, Usman Akram Gonadal, said in a press conference.

"He resurfaced after the withdrawal of western NATO forces (from Afghanistan). He visited Afghanistan in August and he began his efforts to reorganise Al-Qaeda."

US troops backed by NATO toppled the Taliban's first regime in 2001 for refusing to hand over Al-Qaeda militants behind the 9/11 attacks.

Bin Laden was later discovered living in Pakistan and shot dead in a nighttime US operation in 2011.

The Taliban took back power in Afghanistan in 2021, kicking out the foreign-backed government after two decades of fighting US and NATO troops.

Militancy has since surged along Pakistan's border, with Islamabad accusing Kabul's rulers of failing to root out groups taking shelter on Afghan soil while preparing assaults on Pakistan.

The Taliban government insists it will not allow foreign militant outfits to operate from Afghanistan, but Islamabad-Kabul relations have soured over the issue.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has announced a sweeping new military campaign to control the violence. - AFP