US wants Hafiz Saeed behind bars

Pakistan

US wants Hafiz Saeed behind bars

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The US said that it wanted the LeT founder Hafiz Saeed to be prosecuted and jailed.

05 April,2012 05:02 am

The United States said Wednesday it wanted the founder of the banned group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) to be prosecuted and jailed after he openly goaded Washington with a press conference in Pakistan.Hafiz Saeed, the founder of the organization accused of masterminding the 2008 siege of Mumbai that killed 166 people, dared the United States to contact him after Washington announced a $10 million for information on him.Hes free to do that, unfortunately, up to this moment. But we hope to put him behind bars, State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters when asked about Saeeds public appearance.Toner sought to clarify the US reward for Saeed, saying that Washington was offering money not for his capture but for information that would allow his prosecution in a court in the United States or elsewhere.We all know where he is -- you know, every journalist in Pakistan and in the region knows how to find him -- but were looking for information that can be usable to convict him in a court of law, Toner said.He denied that the United States was trying to make new demands of authorities in Pakistan, which is completing a review aimed at resetting relations with Washington after months of crisis between the war partners.Its not to put pressure on any one government. But we wanted to be able to provide Pakistan with the tools that they need to prosecute this individual, Toner said.