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UK terror suspect: I'm innocent
05/01/2007 18:14 - (SA)
Islamabad - A British Muslim suspected in an alleged plot to blow up trans-Atlantic jetliners flying out of Britain last summer reiterated his innocence on Friday.
"I am innocent," Rashid Rauf told reporters in Rawalpindi, a barracks near capital Islamabad, after he appeared before a judge who extended his detention to January 19.
"I ask Pakistan government to do me justice," said the thin, bearded man wearing a traditional Pakistani loose robe and a prayer cap.
Rauf, who also has a Pakistani passport, was arrested by Pakistani intelligence agents in August on a tip from their British counterparts.
At the time, Pakistan identified him as a key suspect in the alleged terror plot sparking a security alert in Britain that saw mass cancellations of flights to and from Heathrow Airport for several days in August.
However, a Pakistani anti-terrorism court dropped terrorism charges against Rauf on December 13, and held him accountable only for possessing bomb-making materials and living in Pakistan without valid documents.
Later, a higher court - acting on an appeal by Pakistani authorities - suspended the anti-terrorism court's ruling until January 15.
On Friday, Rauf was brought before a judge who extended his detention.
- AP
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