KARACHI, Pakistan - A suspected Islamic militant, wanted in connection with a suicide attack three years ago that left 11 French engineers dead, was arrested on Thursday after a shootout, police said.The man, identified as Mufti Mohammed Sabir, was arrested near a bus terminal after arriving from Rawalpindi, a city near the capital Islamabad, Karachi police chief Tariq Jameel told a news conference. Sabir tried to
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Sabir is believed to be a bomb maker and is suspected to have packed a car with explosives which was blown up in front of Karachi’s Sheraton hotel May 8, 2002, killing the French nationals and four other people. The Frenchmen were here to help build a submarine for Pakistan’s navy. A month later, another suicide bomber blew up a truck outside the U.S. Consulate in Karachi, killing 14 Pakistanis.
Sabir, in his 30s, is allegedly a member of the outlawed Harkat Jihad-e-Islami militant group. A court in Karachi has sentenced to death three other suspected group members for the French bombing. At least two more suspects remain at large, Jameel said.