Pakistan's chief intelligence agency says a top al-Qaida member arrested earlier this month has given information that is helping investigators close in on Osama bin Laden.
An official with the country's Inter Services Intelligence told reporters Monday the March first arrest of Khalid Shaikh Mohammad in Rawalpindi shows the hunt for the world's most wanted man is moving forward.
But the official said authorities are not sure whether to believe the al-Qaida operative's claim he recently met with Osama bin Laden, because he refused to say where the meeting took place.
Khalid Shaikh Mohammad is the suspected mastermind of the September 11th terrorist attacks in the United States.
Meanwhile, Pakistani authorities say at least three foreigners suspected of ties to al-Qaida were arrested during pre-dawn raids in the northwestern city of Peshawar.
Pakistani sources say those detained include one Iraqi national and two Afghans. They say authorities also seized documents and a number of computer disks during the operation.