London, September 15
A shadowy former General of the Pakistan army is emerging as a key figure in the network for training terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
A spokesman for the militant group Al Madad, which has links to the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba, said the unnamed former General was responsible for training scores of British youths who had joined jehadi groups in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
“We’ve sent many youths from this country for training at two camps, one in the Arab world and one in the Indian subcontinent,” the spokesman told IANS. “They are being trained under the guidance of a retired Pakistani General.”
Ashraq Al Awsat, a London-based Arab newspaper, has also reported the involvement of the General in training terrorists.
The newspaper quoted a former pilot of Afghanistan’s national carrier Ariana Airlines as saying that at least 14 pilots were trained in Afghanistan under the guidance of the Pakistani General.
Al Madad, which claims to have sent thousands of British Muslim youths to training camps in Afghanistan and Pakistan, is currently the subject of a new investigation.
Under the new policy set out by US President George W. Bush, investigations will now proceed beyond terrorist groups to the people backing and training their cadres.
“We’ve been sending youths from here to two training camps,” the Al Madad spokesman said. “Over the past five years, this number runs into thousands. Our mujahideen only attack military targets in their fight for freedom.”
The group also admits to sending British youths to join the Lashkar-e-Toiba. “We have made it possible for these youths to reach the Lashkar,” the spokesman said.
Al Madad ideologically works for Khilafah, the establishment of a single Islamic state across the world. It is reported to be working with two other groups in north Britain to recruit and train Islamic youths.
IANS
