Pakistani gets 2 years jail for helping LeT

Washington, April 14 (IANS) A Pakistani man living in Virginia has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for providing material support to Pakistan based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taeba (LeT), blamed for the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

Jubair Ahmad pleaded guilty in December to making a propaganda video for the group, which included images and a prayer given by the LeT leader, Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, suspected of masterminding the Mumbai attacks.

The video also showed "scenes where atrocities have been inflicted on Muslims, followed by the activities of the mujahideen conducting attacks in Kashmir," according to the Justice Department.

Recently, the United States announced a $10 million reward for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Saeed.

Ahmad admitted to communicating with someone in Pakistan named Talha Saeed -- Saeed's son -- who asked Ahmad to make the video.

Ahmad said he asked Talha Saeed if he wanted to include an image from the Mumbai attacks, but he vetoed that idea. Ahmad uploaded his finished video onto a YouTube account in September 2010.

According to court documents, Ahmad, now 24, attended LeT training camps as a teenager. In 2007, Ahmad got a visa and he and his family moved from Pakistan to the US. He has been living in the US legally, but has not become a citizen.

At sentencing, prosecutors said Ahmad conspired to recruit others and to raise money for LeT. He also "expressed his intention to return to Pakistan to complete the LeT commando training course and be launched on a martyrdom mission."

US District Judge T.S. Ellis ordered that once Ahmad completes his prison term, he will be turned over to immigration officials for removal proceedings.

(Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in)