The parents of slain U.S. reporter Daniel Pearl have welcomed the arrest in Pakistan of a former militant leader allegedly involved in his 2002 murder.
In a statement issued through the New York-based Daniel Pearl Foundation late Monday, Ruth and Judea Pearl hailed the news.
Pakistani security officials said they arrested Qari Abdul Hai Sunday during a security crackdown in Karachi. He once led Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, an outlawed Sunni Muslim militant group that has carried out numerous attacks in Pakistan, especially against minority Shi'ites.
It is not clear what role Hai is suspected of playing in the abduction and murder.
Pearl was the South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal when he was abducted in Karachi in January 2002 while researching a story about Islamist militants. He was 38 when killed.
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the al-Qaida militant who claimed responsibility for the September 11 attacks, said he beheaded Pearl after his abduction.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.