German authorities have arrested an al-Qaida suspect, wanted by Spain, charging him with helping to finance the terror network for years.

Judicial officials in Hamburg say Mamoun Darkazanli, a Syrian-German dual national, was taken into custody on Friday on a Spanish warrant. He's being held pending possible extradition. Madrid alleges Darkazanli was "the permanent contact person and assistant of Osama bin Laden in Germany".

The warrant also described the suspect as Osama bin Laden's financier in Europe. Meanwhile, officials at the Spanish Interior Ministry have said that Darkazanli is not linked to the March 11th train bombings in Madrid. But he is accused of belonging to an al-Qaida cell in the country. Darkazanli faces up to 12 years in a Spanish prison, if convicted.

Source:cctv.com