| British police said on Wednesday they had detained a Moroccan national facing terrorist allegations reportedly linked to both the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States and the Madrid train bombings. "Farid Hilali, a 35-year-old and a Moroccan national, appeared at Bow Street Magistrates Court on June 28, Monday, on a European arrest warrant alleging that he committed terrorist offences," a Scotland Yard spokeswoman said. "He has been remanded in custody till July 5," she said. She was unable to provide details of the charges against him. The Times newspaper said Hilali was suspected of helping to plot the September 11 attacks and was an alleged accomplice in the Madrid train bombings on March 11 this year. Hilali, also known as "Shakur", is believed to have telephoned the alleged head of an al-Qaeda cell in Madrid shortly before the September 11 attacks, it said. The name "Shakur" appeared alongside those of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and 33 others on an indictment in Spain last September. The suspects are alleged to have used the country as a base to plot September 11, the newspaper said. A Home Office spokesman said that Hilali could be extradited to Spain under the newly introduced European arrest warrant, designed to improve cross-border cooperation. |