Pakistani Officials confirm arrest of Sajid Mir, alleged handler of Mumbai Attacks

ISLAMABAD:  In a breakthrough, the Federal Intelligence Agency, one of the law enforcement agencies in Pakistan, has arrested Sajid Mir, an important suspect allegedly involved in the Mumbai attacks.

The “NewsDrum” got to know about the high-profile arrest early in the morning on Saturday. Pakistani authorities have not officially confirmed the arrest. The source said his arrest will be made public in a press conference until the preliminary investigation concludes.

“A team comprising of officials from the country’s various intelligence and law enforcement agencies got hold of the suspect amid a coordinated effort. Pakistani had launched the hunt for Sajid Mir in 2008. It took 14 years for Pakistani authorities to finally arrest him,” the official source who was a member of the raiding team, told NewsDrum. Sajid Mir had been on the run since the 2008 Mumbai attacks which had claimed several dozen lives including Indians, Europeans, and Americans. The attack had widened the gulf between Pakistan and India, nuclear-armed South Asian Rivals which had fought several wars.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had placed a reward of $5 million on Mir’s arrest for his alleged involvement in Mumbai Attacks in which American citizens were also killed. Earlier, the US had included Sajid Mir on the list of most wanted people. Not only the Intelligence agencies of Pakistan have been pondering Mir’s suspected hideouts, but also he was equally sought after by the Interpol and US Intelligence agencies.

While the governments of the USA, India, and European Union await official confirmation by Islamabad following the high-profile arrest, a diplomat representing one of the European nations in Pakistan, has welcomed the arrest.

“It's interesting news. I have also heard about Mir’s arrest. However, we are waiting for an official confirmation,” the diplomat told this correspondent. Earlier this month, an anti-terrorism court in Lahore had awarded Sajid Mir a 15-year jail term in a terror-financing case. Earlier, Mir was presumed dead.

While the law enforcement agencies have earned appreciation by arresting Mir, there a few important questions have also been raised by the critics in Pakistan and the US.

Many in Pakistan and the USA believe that Mir’s arrest came a few months ahead of the planned visit of a team of FATF to Pakistan to decide whether or not to remove Pakistan from the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

Earlier this month, FATF had appreciated Pakistan for complying with the tasks. FATF had hinted to remove Pakistan from its ‘grey list’ after an site visit of its team which has been planned this year most probably before October. Pakistan has been included in the FATF gray list since June 2018 for failing to check money laundering leading to terror financing.

FATF is a global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog that aims to prevent these illegal activities and the harm they cause to society.

Analysts believe that Pakistan’s arrest of Sajid Mir can further make Pakistan’s case strong enough to get out of FATF’s gray list.