The U.S. has turned down an offer of post-Hurricane Sandy assistance
from one of the world's most wanted men, a Pakistani terror leader with a
$10 million U.S. bounty on his head.
Hafiz Saeed, an Islamist militant who is alleged to have masterminded
the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks that left more than 160 people dead,
issued a written statement Wednesday saying his organization was willing
to send supplies and volunteers to help the U.S. East Coast recover.
"We are ready to send food items, medicines and doctors to the U.S. for
the people affected by the storm," said Saeed. "America [may] fix
bounties on our heads but as followers of the teachings of the Prophet
Mohammed (peace be upon him), we feel it is our Islamic duty to help
Americans trapped in a catastrophe." Saeed noted that the charity he
heads had provided aid in Sri Lanka and Indonesia after the 2004
tsunami.
Saeed is the founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba, a terror group banned by the
Pakistani government, and still heads its charity wing, Jamaat ud Dawa.
Earlier this year the U.S. State Department offered a $10 million reward
for information leading to his capture or arrest.
After Saeed's offer of assistance, the U.S. Embassy in Pakistan declined
his help via Twitter. "We respect the Islamic tradition of help to the
needy," said the tweet, "but we can't take Hafiz Saeed's offer
seriously."
Saeed founded Lashkar-e-Taiba more than 25 years ago and has mounted
many attacks against India as part of a campaign to wrest the Kashmir
region from Indian control. Saeed is accused of masterminding the Nov.
26, 2008 terror attacks on the city of Mumbai. Ten gunmen took part in
the multi-day assault, which cost the lives of at least 166 people,
including six Americans. The lone surviving attacker, who faces a death
penalty, has accused Saeed of hatching the plot.
Pakistan kept Saeed under house arrest after the attacks for some months
but then released him. He maintains a high public profile inside the
country. In September, he led street protests against the anti-Islam
film "Innocence of Muslims."
On April 2, when the State Department announced its $10 million reward
for Saeed, it said the bounty had "everything to do with Mumbai and his
brazen flouting of the justice system."
Saeed responded to the announcement of the bounty by publicly taunting the U.S. government.
"I am here, I am visible," said Saeed on April 4. "America should give that reward money to me."
"I will be in Lahore tomorrow. America can contact me whenever it wants
to," said Saeed. He also expressed surprise that the U.S. did not know
where he was, offered to face charges in an American court, and said
America had "gone blind" because of its hatred of Islam.
State Department spokesman Mark Toner reacted to Saeed's taunts by
stressing that the reward was for information leading to his arrest or
conviction, not his location. "We all know where he is," said Toner.
"Every journalist in Pakistan knows where he is." Toner said it was
unfortunate that Saeed was free to give press conferences, but that the
U.S. hopes "to put him behind bars" and is seeking information that
would "give the Pakistani government the tools to arrest him."
The $10 million bounty makes Saeed among the top five most-wanted on the U.S. terror list; al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri
is worth a $25 million reward. The U.S. also offered up to $2 million
for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Saeed's
brother-in-law, who is the deputy leader of Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Copyright 2012 by ABC News
