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U.S. Suspects in Pakistan to Remain in Custody

   The  five  American  men  were  arrested  in  Pakistan  in December on
   suspicion of trying to contact al-Qaida-linked groups

   VOA News 04 January 2010
   In  this  five-combo file photo released by Sargodha Police Department
   (11  Dec  2009),  arrested American Muslims, from left, Waqar Hussain,
   Ramy  Zamzam,  Umar  Farooq,  Ahmad  Minni,  Aman  Yemer  are  seen in
   Sargodha, Pakistan

Photo: AP

   The five American men arrested in Pakistan in December (file)

   A  Pakistani  court has ordered five American men arrested in Pakistan
   in  December  on suspicion of trying to contact al-Qaida-linked groups
   to remain in custody for at least two weeks.
   The  militant suspects appeared briefly in court Monday in Sargodha in
   eastern Pakistan.
   The  men's  lawyer,  Amir  Abdullah  Rokri,   told  the court that his
   clients  had not committed any crime in Pakistan.  He said the men had
   intended to go to war-torn Afghanistan to help fellow Muslims.
   Pakistani  police  have  said  they  plan  to  ask  the court to press
   terrorism charges, carrying life sentences, against the men.
   Investigators  say  the  men  used  Internet  sites  to try to contact
   militants  in  Pakistan  before  traveling  to  the  country  in  late
   November.
   Pakistani  officials  have said the men had planned to attack sites in
   the country, including possibly a nuclear plant.
   It was not immediately clear when court proceedings will resume.
   The  Americans   were  arrested  at the home of a leader of the banned
   militant  group  Jaish-e-Muhammad  near  the city of Sargodha in early
   December.  The group has ties to al-Qaida.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

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