U.S. hails arrest of terror suspect in KL

U.S. hails arrest of terror suspect in KL

MALAYSIA: An American terrorist suspect wanted in the United States on charges of conspiracy to support Osama bin Laden's al- Qaeda network has been arrested in Malaysia, the two countries announced on Tuesday.

The U.S. hailed the arrest of Ahmed Ibrahim Bilal, 24, and said arrangements were being made for his deportation, but the High Court here later granted lawyers an order staying his extradition until a hearing on Wednesday.

Lawyer Darshan Singh told reporters that Bilal would be applying for political asylum in Malaysia, the official Bernama news agency reported.

Earlier, the U.S. embassy said the two countries were working together to return Bilal to the U.S. to "face charges of being part of a suspected terrorist cell and engaged in a conspiracy to join al-Qaeda and Taliban forces fighting against U.S. and allied soldiers in Afghanistan." --AFP