Pak detains man linked to British plot suspect

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani authorities have detained a man who is "apparently related" to a British suspect in the alleged airline bombings plot, security officials said on Wednesday.

The man was picked up by security forces early this month while he was crossing the border into Pakistan from Afghanistan, two senior officials said on condition of anonymity.

His detention led to the arrest a few days later of Rashid Rauf, a British national of Pakistani descent described by Pakistan's foreign ministry as a "key man" in the plot with ties to the Al-Qaeda. 

"In early August, Pakistani authorities picked up a man apparently related to Rashid Rauf when he was crossing the border into Pakistan from Afghanistan," one of the officials said. "Rauf himself was caught and his interrogation revealed the plan prepared in Afghanistan by Al-Qaeda," a senior security official said.

The officials said documents appeared to show the man was related to Rauf but they had not fully confirmed his identity or the exact link between them. They added that he was still in custody.

Pakistan said on Tuesday that it could extradite Rauf to Britain, but added that London had not yet made any request. Reports say Rauf is also wanted for questioning over the death of an uncle in Britain in 2002.