Arrest of Abu Zubaydah, Senior Advisor to Osama bin Laden - 2002-04-03

The White House has confirmed that Abu Zubaydah, a senior advisor to Osama bin Laden, the leader of the terrorist organization al-Qaeda, is in the custody of American forces. Ari Fleischer, the White House spokesperson, praised those who captured Abu Zubaydah in Pakistan last week, stating that his arrest is a significant blow to the al-Qaeda terrorist network. Abu Zubaydah was wounded by three bullets while attempting to escape during his arrest, but his injuries are not life-threatening. U.S. officials believe that Abu Zubaydah has information about future terrorist attack plans against the U.S. and its allies, as well as the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden. Earlier in the week, Pakistani officials arrested sixteen other members of the Taliban and al-Qaeda in a series of raids in Lahore. According to a senior police official, the sixteen detained suspects are Arab, Afghan, and Pakistani, and were taken to detention yesterday. The recent raids occurred four days after American and Pakistani agents captured about 60 al-Qaeda and Taliban fugitives in Lahore and the nearby city of Faisalabad. The New York Times quoted a security chief in Afghanistan stating that thousands of al-Qaeda fighters are attempting to regroup inside Pakistan's borders and separate the two South Asian neighbors. Authorities believe Abu Zubaydah was behind the failed bombing plot at Los Angeles International Airport and the hotel used by Americans in Jordan.