Pakistan extends custody of US militant suspects
The Taliban released a new video on Friday purportedly showing captured U.S. soldier Bowe Robert Bergdahl; meanwhile, a Pakistani court remanded five American militant suspects in custody for another 10 days after police sought more time to complete their investigations.
The video showed a brief clip of Bergdahl, 23, in front of a carpet wearing in combat fatigues, a helmet and sunglasses.
" I'm afraid to tell you that this war has slipped from our fingers and it's just going to be our next Vietnam unless the American people stand up and stop all this nonsense " Suspected US soldier Bowe Robert Bergdahl "I'm afraid to tell you that this war has slipped from our fingers and it's just going to be our next Vietnam unless the American people stand up and stop all this nonsense," he said.
Bergdahl, a private who disappeared on June 30, is the first U.S. soldier to be captured in Afghanistan since the U.S.-led war in 2001.
In the video, Bergdahl, a private first class, gives identifying details about himself such as his rank, date and place of birth and other family information, as well as deployment details.
It was not clear when the video was made and there was no immediate comment from the U.S. military or NATO forces in Afghanistan.
In July, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton denounced his capture as "outrageous" and said the United States was doing everything it could to locate and free him. |
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U.S. Militants in custody " We do not think that a 10-day remand is sufficient to investigate this complex matter. At next hearing we may ask for more time " Senior Pakistani police official Haseeb Shah Meanwhile, a Pakistani court on Friday remanded five American militant suspects in custody for another 10 days after police sought more time to complete their investigations.
The men were detained in Pakistan earlier this month on suspicion of trying to contact al-Qaeda-linked organizations and engage in militant activities, possibly in the lawless northwest where the Taliban insurgency is fiercest.
Judge Mohammad Aslam in the court in the northeastern city of Sargodha said he was extending their detention for another 10 days following a police request, and ordered the police to produce the suspects on January 4.
The men, who are all U.S. citizens with dual nationality including two Pakistani-Americans, have also been questioned by the FBI.
"We do not think that a 10-day remand is sufficient to investigate this complex matter. At next hearing we may ask for more time," senior Pakistani police official Haseeb Shah told AFP.
"We hope to get further clues. A scientific investigation is required in the case and we hope that the evidences found from their laptops could lead to breaking up of a terrorist network," Shah said.
Police were seeking more time to pursue their investigations and said they were looking for a man the suspects had contacted and who was believed to have links with Qaeda.
"In one of the message saved in their common email account, they had mentioned the name of a Pakistani nuclear plant. It is a sensitive matter and we need to investigate further," police official Amir Abbas told the court.
The judge turned down a request by the suspects to be detained together rather than in separate cells. |
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