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Rounding Up Suspected Terrorists

On the sad first anniversary of the September 11 attacks, U.S. officials got some encouraging news about the war on terrorism. In Pakistan, police and army officers had captured Ramzi Binalshibh, a key member of the terrorist group al-Qaeda (al-Kye-dah). He is believed to have helped plan the 9/11 attacks.

Officials say Binalshibh, 30, was supposed to help carry out the attacks but could not get permission to travel to the U.S. Instead, he worked in Germany to help plan and pay for the 9/11 attacks. Binalshibh had been on the run for a year. Investigators hope that he—along with the phone and four computers in his home—will give them more information about al-Qaeda.

Investigators closed in on more suspects closer to home. On September 13 and 14, officials arrested six U.S. citizens accused of helping foreign terrorists. Five were arrested in their hometown, Lackawanna, New York. The sixth was arrested in Bahrain, a Middle Eastern nation. Officials say they have records showing that the men traveled to terrorist camps. "The defendants were going to Afghanistan" to meet al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, said assistant U.S. attorney William Hochul.

The men and others in Lackawanna’s Middle Eastern community insist they are innocent. Said defense attorney William Clauss: "People in the community are confident that these gentlemen are not dangerous."

Next: Turning Up the Pressure on Iraq