British Muslim, 22, held under anti-terrorism laws

A British-born member of the radical Muslim organisation al-Muhajiroun who claimed to have recruited hundreds of volunteers in Britain for the Taliban has been arrested under anti-terrorism laws.

Hassan Butt, 22, is understood to have been arrested in Manchester and is being held in London for questioning.

His arrest comes after a rally in Manchester on Saturday when he was reported to have called on Muslims to support a Jihad (Holy War) against the West and to break British laws.

A spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Police did not name Butt but said a 22-year-old man was arrested in Manchester on Monday.

"He was arrested by the Greater Manchester Police who were acting on behalf of the anti-terror units of the London Police," she said.

The arrest was not in relation to specific acts of violence.

It is believed he is being held under the Terrorism Act 2000 because the newer Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act – introduced after the September 11th attacks in New York and Washington – applies to foreign suspects only.

Mr Butt was born in Luton and has spent most of his life in Manchester, studying at Prestwich High School and Bury College before moving to Pakistan, apparently to take a computer course in Lahore.

He was in Lahore at the start of the war in Afghanistan but resurfaced in London last December.

He called on British Muslims recruited by the Taliban to go home and launch terrorist attacks in Britain. He has also claimed that some Muslims he recruited in Britain died in the conflict in Afghanistan.

Sheikh Omar Bakri Muhammad, head of the al-Muhajiroun group, who also spoke at Saturday's rally, confirmed yesterday that Mr Butt is a member of his organisation and its former spokesman in Pakistan. "He was arrested in Manchester under the terror laws. I spoke with him yesterday," he said.

Mr Butt's arrest follows that of Abu Qatada, a Muslim cleric suspected of being an influential al-Qa'ida figure in Europe.