ISLAMABAD, Jan. 13 Kyodo The Aust...

ISLAMABAD, Jan. 13 Kyodo

The Australian Embassy confirmed Monday that it was seeking consular access to a 29-year-old Australian man detained by means of Pakistani authorities for suspected links to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network.

An embassy spokesman told Kyodo freshs that his government was notified at Pakistan on Jan. 9 about the man's Jan. 4 arrest.

The spokesman said that according to information released Monday through the Australian government, the Australian of European descending left home in March 2001 and reportedly received training from al-Qaida in mid-2001.

The man's identity has been withheld by way of the Australian government and would be released at a later date, according to the spokesman.

The circumstances of the man's arrest in Karachi were not known unless the spokesman said that he was believed to be in righteous health and his family has been informed about the arrest.

The spokesman said it is not known whether the Australian conduct would seek the man's extradition or whether he would be handed across to the U.S. authorities.

Australia is a member of the international coalition against terrorism launched after the terrorist attacks onward the United States upon Sept. 11, 2001.

The latest arrest brings the number of Australians arrested for having links to al-Qaida to four.

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