22.11.2002 9.01 am

WASHINGTON - A senior al Qaeda leader captured recently and in US custody was identified on Thursday (Friday NZT) as Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri who had close ties to Osama bin Laden and suspected of being chief of the network's Gulf operations, US officials said.

"He's a top al Qaeda operational planner for the Arabian peninsula, he was captured in recent weeks and is currently in US custody at an undisclosed location," one official said.

- REUTERS

-- Anonymous, November 21, 2002