Bin Laden Aide May Be in Custody

U.S. and Pakistani authorities are trying to determine whether an Arab arrested in raids here last week is a key lieutenant of Osama bin Laden, a senior police official said Saturday.

The man bears a strong resemblance to Abu Zubeida, Bin Laden’s senior field commander, who is believed to be trying to reorganize the Al Qaeda terrorist network after the collapse of Taliban rule in Afghanistan.

“We are trying to confirm the identity of one Arab who is believed to be Abu Zubeida,” said Javed Iqbal Cheema, a senior Interior Ministry official.

The man is among 60 people, including 25 Arabs and four Afghans, who were arrested Thursday in raids by Pakistani and American agents in Faisalabad, Lahore and Multan.

A police official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said authorities were waiting for information from the United States to help in determining the man’s identity.

If the man is Abu Zubeida, he would be the most important Al Qaeda official captured by the U.S.-led coalition since military operations began in Afghanistan on Oct. 7.

Abu Zubeida, 30, is believed to have been born in Saudi Arabia but to have strong ties to Jordan and the Palestinian territories. He has been sentenced to death in Jordan and is believed to be connected to many of Al Qaeda’s operations against U.S. interests.

Pakistani newspapers and witnesses said the raids were carried out by mixed teams of Pakistani and American agents who seized weapons, computers and documents. One suspect was killed and five people, including a police officer, were wounded.

The raids appeared to be linked to the investigation into a March 17 grenade attack on a Protestant church in Islamabad in which five people, including two Americans and the assailant, were killed.

President Pervez Musharraf’s spokesman, Maj. Gen. Rashid Qureshi, denied that Americans participated in the raids. U.S. officials have refused to discuss the operation.