Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh
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Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh |
|
|---|---|
| Born |
23 December 1973 London, United Kingdom |
| Citizenship | British |
| Education | London School of Economics (Did not graduate) |
| Criminal charge | Kidnapping, murder |
| Criminal penalty | Death, commuted to life imprisonment |
| Criminal status | Imprisoned |
Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh (Urdu: احمد عمر سعید شیخ) (sometimes known as Umar Sheikh, Sheikh Omar,Sheik Syed, or by the alias "Mustafa Muhammad Ahmad") (born 23 December 1973) is a British terrorist of Pakistani descent with links to various Islamist militant organisations, including Jaish-e-Mohammed, Al-Qaeda, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and the Taliban.
He was arrested and served time in prison for the 1994 kidnappings of Western tourists in India, an act which he acknowledges. He was released from captivity in 1999 and provided safe passage into Afghanistan with the support of Taliban in exchange for passengers aboard hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814. He is most well known for his role in the 2002 kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl. Saeed was arrested by Pakistani police on 12 February 2002, in Lahore, in connection with the Pearl kidnapping, and was sentenced to death on 15 July 2002 for killing Pearl. His judicial appeal has not yet been heard. The delay has been ascribed to his purported links with MI6.
Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, in his book In the Line of Fire, stated that Saeed was originally recruited by British intelligence agency, MI6, while studying at the London School of Economics. He alleges Saeed was sent to the Balkans by MI6 to engage in jihadi operations. Musharraf later says, "At some point, he probably became a rogue or double agent".
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