Malawi police raided five homes in the capital Blantyre and arrested five foreign nationals allegedly linked to Al-Qa’ida.
The detainees include a Saudi Arabian, who is the Malawi Branch Director of The Saudi Trust, a Sudanese who heads the Islamic Zakat Fund Trust in Blantyre, two Turks, and a Kenyan who is an Islamic scholar hired by the Muslim Association of Malawi.
All five are suspected of having links to Al-Qa’ida and of making dubious monetary deals, reports the London-based daily A-Sharq Al-Awsat on Tuesday.
The detainees’ attorney, Shabir Latif, said the police are holding them close to the airport and they are being treated appallingly – they were dragged out of their houses blindfolded with their hands tied, he said.
The attorney added the authorities might respond positively to the American request to transfer them to Guantanamo in Cuba, where other Al-Qa’ida-linked alleged terrorists are being held.
The Republic of Malawi is located in East Central Africa and covers an area of 118,500 square kilometers. Its population is approximately nine million, comprised of various tribes that migrated from other parts of Africa. The religious composition of Malawi society is: 64% Christian (predominantly Catholic), 12% Muslim, and others of traditional indigenous beliefs (Animism), according to the Philip’s World Handbook.
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(Maps: University of Texas)