'We are hours behind Bin Laden'

Pakistan's intelligence chiefs said yesterday that the net was closing on Osama bin Laden and confirmed that a senior al-Qa'ida suspect captured 10 days ago claimed to have met the fugitive leader in December.

"We appear to be just hours behind him [Bin Laden]," an official said, citing evidence from Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, al-Qa'ida's alleged chief of operations.

A senior-ranking officer with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) said that Mohammed held out against his interrogators for two days but on the third day began to talk, eventually claiming to have met Bin Laden in December.

But the intelligence officer added that he would not believe this until the captive, who is now in US custody, supplied more details. "I don't believe him unless he tells us the locations and gives us witnesses," he said.

The ISI also cast doubt on reports that Mohammed had been carrying letters written by Bin Laden. An official said: "How can we be sure if we haven't seen his writing?"

An ISI source also said 10 men had been arrested in the northwest city of Peshawar for suspected al-Qa'ida links. One of them was believed to have been in contact with bin Laden.

He said the man, identified only as Masood and reported to be either an Afghan or an Egyptian, had received a telephone call that was traced by agents monitoring al-Qa'ida.

"We think he was in contact with Osama bin Laden," said the source.

Masood was arrested on Saturday with an Iraqi Kurd and an Iranian. Seven other al-Qa'ida suspects were arrested in raids yesterday.