May 27, 2004
Al-Qaeda Related Arrests In Japan
Police on Wednesday arrested five men suspected of violating immigration and other laws as part of an investigation into an alleged senior member of the al-Qaeda terrorist network who spent time in Japan.Arrested were Islam Mohamed Himu, 33, a Bangladeshi residing in Toda, Saitama Prefecture; Bangladeshi Ahmed Faishal, 26, of Kawaguchi; Kane Yaya, 41, a Mali national living in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward; construction worker Syed Naseer Syed Gaffar, 32, an Indian national living in the village of Higashi, Gunma Prefecture; and Md Muktar Hossain, a 29-year-old Bangladeshi living in Kawaguchi.
The arrests were made during searches of more than 10 locations in Tokyo, Saitama, Kanagawa, Gunma and Niigata prefectures that included the homes and offices of foreign Muslims living in Japan.
It was recently learned that Lionel Dumont, 33, a French national of Algerian descent believed to be a senior al-Qaeda member, lived in Japan until September. He made telephone calls to these locations after he left Japan and before his arrest in Germany in December.
It is the first time that Japanese authorities have arrested people believed to be tied to key al-Qaeda members.
The rest of the article here.
Posted by Ithildin at May 27, 2004 12:36 PM | PROCURE FINE OLD WORLD ABSINTHE