Defiant Pak says ‘it is not obliged’ to arrest Hafiz Saeed

September 22nd, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has said that action against Jamaat-ud-Dawa Chief Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, would only be taken based on evidence gathered against him. Interacting with media persons on the sidelines of a program in Multan, Gilani said action against Saeed would be taken in accordance with the evidence, which clearly implies that Islamabad is unlikely to take any substantial action against the terrorist leader.

September 22nd, 2009 ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Tuesday confirmed that Hafiz Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, had been arrested, with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani saying the evidence against him would decide what action needs to be taken. The interior ministry can tell you the actual position but I believe he is in custody.

September 22nd, 2009 NEW YORK - External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna has said that India would be interested to see how Pakistan proceeds with reference to the Mumbai terror attacks.

September 21st, 2009 LAHORE - Mumbai terror attacks mastermind and chief of the Jamaat-ud-Dawa, Hafiz Saeed, has been placed under house arrest. The Pakistani authorities have also barred him from leading Eid prayers.

September 20th, 2009 LAHORE - Hafiz Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks and chief of the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa group, has been put under house arrest at his residence here, a media report said Monday. A posse of police personnel has been deployed outside his residence, "restricting his movement", Geo TV reported Monday.

September 19th, 2009 NEW YORK - : Pakistani authorities may have filed cases against Lashkar -e-Taiba (LeT) chief Hafeez Mohammad Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, but Islamabad's actions are being considered as a mere 'hogwash'. The New York Times, while reporting the actions taken against Saeed, said the ambivalence of Pakistani authorities in cracking down on the LeT's fouder leader was clear.

September 7th, 2009 ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI - Pakistan Monday reiterated its sincerity in bringing the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks to justice, saying India should assist in the process instead of making allegations on Islamabad's intentions. "India should not doubt our sincerity in handling this case.

August 5th, 2009 ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI - Pakistan Wednesday banned the Jamaat-ud Dawa (JuD) of Hafiz Saeed, who India says masterminded the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, and 24 other religious and welfare organisations. Also banned is the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror group that Saeed founded and which morphed into the JuD in the wake of the December 13, 2001, attack on the Indian parliament that New Delhi blamed on the outfit.

July 28th, 2009 LAHORE - Pakistan has denied arresting Jamaat-ud-Daawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed, in connection with the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. Interior Advisor Rehman Malik said there is 'not enough proof' of Saeed's involvement in the 26/11 carnage, so the alleged mastermind could not be put behind bars.

July 14th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - The government in Pakistan's Punjab province has decided to disassociate itself from the Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed case and filed a plea for its withdrawal. On Monday, the provincial government informed the Supreme Court that it has challenged the release of Saeed due to certain "confidential evidence" against him.

July 7th, 2009 ISLAMABAD - The Pakistan Government and the Punjab province Government on Tuesday re-filed the petitions against the release of Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, after removing the objections. The federal and Punjab governments after removing these objections have re-filed the petitions.

June 2nd, 2009 LAHORE - Jamat ud Dawa chief Hafeez Saeed today said that the lone surviving terrorist captured after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks has no connection with his outfit. Addressing a press conference after being released from the house arrest, Saeed said, "Ajmal Kasab has no connection with the JuD.

June 2nd, 2009 LAHORE - The Pakistan Government's reservations about producing evidence against the Mumbai terror attacks' mastermind Hafiz Saeed may have been the reason behind the Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief's release from house arrest. The Lahore High Court has ordered Saeed's release due to lack of evidence, but it is pertinent to note that Pakistan's Attorney General Sardar Latif Khosa had just days ago told the Lahore High Court that the government had enough 'material' to prove Saeed's involvement in terror activities, but it couldn't produce it in the court keeping in mind the 'national security'.

June 2nd, 2009 LAHORE - Immediately after his release from house arrest on Tuesday, the Mumbai terror attacks' mastermind Hafiz Saeed has said that Pak forces should be brought back from the Swat region, as there was no need to fight. Geo TV quoted Saeed as saying that he neither supports the suicide attacks nor does he accept the Swat Operation.

May 31st, 2009 LAHORE - Pakistan Attorney General Sardar Latif Khosa has said that the government has enough 'material', other than a UN resolution, to keep the Jamaat-ud- Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed and his colleague Colonel (retired) Nazir Ahmad under custody. Khosa told the Lahore High Court (LHC), which is hearing Saeed's detention case, that the custody of the two JuD leaders was protective and preventive in nature, and not the detention for which the petitioners had moved the habeas corpus petition.