White House condemns Pakistan’s release of militant suspect

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The White House is calling Pakistan’s release of a U.S.-wanted militant a “step in the wrong direction” and says a refusal to re-arrest him would damage bilateral ties and Pakistan’s reputation around the world.

In a statement Saturday, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the U.S. “strongly condemns” the release of Hafiz Saeed from house arrest. She urged his “immediate re-arrest and prosecution.”

“Saeed’s release, after Pakistan’s failure to prosecute or charge him, sends a deeply troubling message about Pakistan’s commitment to combatting international terrorism and belies Pakistani claims that it will not provide sanctuary for terrorists on its soil,” she said. “If Pakistan does not take action to lawfully detain Saeed and charge him for his crimes, its inaction will have repercussions for bilateral relations and for Pakistan’s global reputation.”

Saeed is allegedly the founder of a banned group linked to the 2008 Mumbai, India, attack that killed 168 people. He has been designated a terrorist by the U.S. Justice Department and the U.S. has a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest and conviction.

He was released before dawn on Friday after a three-judge panel in Pakistan ended his detention in the eastern city of Lahore.

The move outraged both U.S. and Indian authorities. Saeed’s spokesman Yahya Mujahid called it a “victory of truth.”

“Hafiz Saeed was under house arrest on baseless allegations and jail officials came to his home last night and told him that he is now free,” he said.

Saeed ran the Jamaat-ud-Dawa organization, widely believed to be a front for the Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group, which India says was behind the Mumbai attack.