Pakistanis say they’re closing in on reporter’s captors

By Kathy Gannon

Associated Press

KARACHI, Pakistan – Pakistani investigators believe they are very close to solving the kidnapping of a Wall Street Journal reporter and are optimistic they can find him alive, a senior police officer said today.

In the capital Islamabad, U.S. deputy Treasury Secretary Kenneth Dam said Pakistan was carrying out a “vigorous” search for Daniel Pearl, who was abducted Jan. 23 in Karachi.

Pakistani authorities would like to end the kidnap ordeal before President Pervez Musharraf visits the United States next week. Today marked the sixth day without word from Pearl’s captors, and the Journal appealed to his kidnappers to resume contacts.

“We know who has Daniel, and we are very close,” Mukhtar Ahmed Sheikh, who is in charge of police here in Sindh province, told The Associated Press. “We might conclude the whole thing very soon, sooner than you think.”

Sheikh refused to discuss the case in detail. However, police sources have identified three key suspects – all with links to Islamic extremist groups. Pearl was last seen heading for an appointment with someone he thought could arrange an interview with Sheik Mubarak Ali Shah Gilani, leader of a small Muslim group.

Gilani has been detained but denies any knowledge of the kidnapping.

In Islamabad, Dam told reporters he was “very impressed with what Pakistan is doing” to solve the case.

“The importance of this matter to the U.S. simply can’t be overstated,” Dam told reporters. “They’re on top of the situation. It’s a vigorous investigation and I’m quite satisfied.”

Pakistan authorities say the investigation has expanded beyond Karachi, a teeming city of 12 million with a reputation for violence and lawlessness.

Troops guarding Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan have also been ordered to guard against any attempt by Pearl’s captors to move and hide him there, a senior Interior Ministry official said today on condition of anonymity.

The last e-mailed message that police consider genuine was sent Jan. 30, included a photo of Pearl, threatened to kill him within 24 hours.

In an open letter released late Monday, the Journal’s managing editor, Paul Steiger, urged Pearl’s captors to make contact. Steiger said direct communication would help end the “great deal of confusion” caused by hoax e-mails send in recent days from people claiming to be holding Pearl, who is the Journal’s South Asian bureau chief.

Steiger’s letter was addressed to the National Movement for the Restoration of Pakistani Sovereignty, a previously unknown group that first claimed in a Jan. 27 e-mail to be holding Pearl. The e-mail included photographs of Pearl – one with a gun to his head – and demands that Washington return Pakistani prisoners held at the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for trial in Pakistan. The Bush administration has ruled out any negotiations.

“I have not heard from you for several days and want to begin a dialogue that will address your concerns and bring about Danny’s safe release,” Steiger’s letter said.

He suggested the kidnappers use the e-mail account or private telephone number of one of two Pearl friends, both best men at his wedding.

“This line of communication would show me that Danny is with you and would allow us one-to-one contact. We are eager to hear from you soon,” Steiger concluded.

Mariane Pearl, who is six months pregnant with the couple’s first child, also urged the kidnappers to contact her.

“If anyone’s going to give his life to save him it’s me,” she said Monday in a BBC television interview. “Please make contact with me – I’m ready.”

Musharraf is a key ally in the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan. He has also won praise from Washington for cracking down on Pakistan-based Islamic militants accused of terrorism against nuclear rival India.

The Associated Press Managing Editors called for Pearl’s immediate and unconditional release and an end to the targeting of journalists anywhere in the world.

“Nothing can be gained by continuing to hold Pearl in captivity. He is not a government official; he is in no position to influence U.S. government policy or the multinational war on terrorism,” the APME statement said.

In their Jan. 27 e-mail, Pearl’s captors also called for the release of Afghanistan’s former ambassador to Pakistan, Mullah Abdul Salaam Zaeef, who was the Taliban’s most-recognized spokesman. The bearded, black-turbaned ambassador was arrested in Pakistan and turned over to the United States.

A close relative of Zaeef’s today condemned Pearl’s abduction.

“Islam does not allow kidnapping of innocent people,” said the family member, who did not want to be identified. “We condemn this act and ask those who have kidnapped Mr.Pearl not to use the name of Zaeef.”

Investigators still consider Islamic extremists, especially Harkat ul-Mujahedeen, as the most likely suspects in Pearl’s abduction. But police have not found the primary suspects, Mohammed Hashim, Bashir Ahmad Shabbir and Imtiaz Siddique.

Hashim, also known as Arif, is believed to be a Harkat ul-Mujahedeen activist and Shabbir was a follower of Gilani, police said. Pearl had contacted both suspects before his abduction.

Gilani was arrested last week and authorities say he remains in custody. But investigators are uncertain whether he was involved in the abduction.