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After ascertaining the facts from various intelligence agencies and the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigations of the United States has launched a manhunt to nab Sheikh Umer, one of the militants released in exchange for the passengers of the hijacked Indian Airlines plane IC-814 in 1999.
Quoting preliminary investigations by the FBI, official sources said that Umer, a British national, is believed to have transferred $100,000 to the account of Mohammed Atta, one of the terrorists involved in the attacks on the US.
Umer was among the three militants released by government after the IC-814 was hijacked to Kandahar in 1999.
The other two were Maulana Masood Azhar and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar.
Umer was arrested by security forces in Jammu and Kashmir in 1994 and his involvement was found in an unsuccessful attempt of kidnapping British and American tourists visiting the valley.
The FBI had sought information about him from the intelligence agencies, including his interrogation report and other activities during his stay in the country, the sources said.
The intelligence officials also briefed the FBI that Umer was stated to be in Pakistan and that he had reportedly visited Bosnia and Chechnya after his release in 1999, the sources said.
The FBI sleuths have reportedly conveyed to their Indian counterparts that Sheikh Umer was also seen in Karachi, two weeks before the September 11 attacks.
The sources said investigations also revealed that Umer was believed to be the brain behind the Jaish-e-Mohammed, which was formed by Masood Azhar.
The FBI also sought the detailed interrogation report of Masood Azhar, who is being termed as the ideologue of the Taleban and enjoys lot of support from Osama Bin Laden, the sources said.
The sources said that immediately after their release in Kandahar, at least two militants -- Masood and Umer -- met Laden, who is believed to have handed over a large sum of money to Azhar to start his own outfit.
PTI
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