| GEO World | | German-Pakistani charged with al-Qaida membership | Updated at: 0051 PST, Friday, September 05, 2008
 BERLIN: A German man of Pakistani heritage suspected of raising money and recruiting fighters for al-Qaida has been charged with membership in Osama bin Laden's terrorist organization, federal prosecutors said Thursday.
According to a statement from German prosecutors, Nasir traveled “regularly'' to Pakistan and “by summer 2004 at the latest'' he had agreed with al-Qaida leaders in the Pakistani-Afghan border region ``to take part in al-Qaida activities.''
His attorney, Manfred Gnjidic, was on holiday Thursday and his office said he could not be reached for comment. But at the time of Nasir's arrest, Gnjidic said his client had not confessed to anything.
Nasir was quoted himself in Germany's Stern magazine as saying he had made several trips to Pakistan not to visit terror camps, but to purchase precious stones.
But prosecutors said that between April 2005 to June 2007 he made at least four trips to Pakistan's border region with Afghanistan, in one case handing over euro15,000 (US$21,732) to al-Qaida and on another at least euro4,000 (US$5,795.20) in cash.
The suspect, identified only as 46-year-old Aleem N. whose family has identified him as Aleem Nasir was arrested in February at his home in the southwestern state of Rheinland-Palatinate and was charged Aug. 19. |  |
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