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| Britain Arrests Ex-Detainee Freed by U.S. | Britain Arrests Ex-Detainee Freed by U.S. |
| (6 months later) | |
| LONDON — The British police said on Tuesday that they had arrested Moazzam Begg, a former detainee at the American prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, along with three other people on suspicion of terrorism offenses related to the war in Syria, where, intelligence officials say, hundreds of British militants have been drawn to the fight against President Bashar al-Assad. | |
| Mr. Begg, 45, was one of the last Britons held at the naval base in Cuba before his release and return home in early 2005. At the time, lawyers said he and a fellow detainee, Feroz Abbasi, had been held in solitary confinement for nearly two years. Mr. Begg was detained in Pakistan in 2002 and had lived in Afghanistan the previous year, when the United States-led war against the Taliban began. | Mr. Begg, 45, was one of the last Britons held at the naval base in Cuba before his release and return home in early 2005. At the time, lawyers said he and a fellow detainee, Feroz Abbasi, had been held in solitary confinement for nearly two years. Mr. Begg was detained in Pakistan in 2002 and had lived in Afghanistan the previous year, when the United States-led war against the Taliban began. |
| The West Midlands police in Birmingham said a 44-year-old woman and her 20-year-old son were also detained, along with a 36-year-old man. The three were not identified. | The West Midlands police in Birmingham said a 44-year-old woman and her 20-year-old son were also detained, along with a 36-year-old man. The three were not identified. |
| Identifying Mr. Begg does not imply any guilt, a police statement confirming his arrest said. Counterterrorism police officers were said to be searching the detainees’ homes and to have confiscated vehicles and electronic equipment. | Identifying Mr. Begg does not imply any guilt, a police statement confirming his arrest said. Counterterrorism police officers were said to be searching the detainees’ homes and to have confiscated vehicles and electronic equipment. |
| A senior counterterrorism officer, Detective Superintendent Shaun Edwards, said all four arrests were connected and had been made on the basis of intelligence reports. There was no immediate risk to public safety, he said. | A senior counterterrorism officer, Detective Superintendent Shaun Edwards, said all four arrests were connected and had been made on the basis of intelligence reports. There was no immediate risk to public safety, he said. |
| While the British authorities have expressed concern about their citizens’ fighting in jihadist groups in Syria, Mr. Begg is by far the most prominent of those detained in connection with the war in Syria. The police said he was suspected of attending a terrorist training camp and “facilitating terrorism overseas.” | While the British authorities have expressed concern about their citizens’ fighting in jihadist groups in Syria, Mr. Begg is by far the most prominent of those detained in connection with the war in Syria. The police said he was suspected of attending a terrorist training camp and “facilitating terrorism overseas.” |
| News of his arrest is certain to stir debate among rights activists who opposed his detention at Guantánamo Bay and supported his protestations that he had never participated in terrorism. | News of his arrest is certain to stir debate among rights activists who opposed his detention at Guantánamo Bay and supported his protestations that he had never participated in terrorism. |
| Mr. Begg is currently a director of a nonprofit group, Cage, campaigning for the release of detainees, most of them Muslims. | Mr. Begg is currently a director of a nonprofit group, Cage, campaigning for the release of detainees, most of them Muslims. |