Pakistani 'al-Qaeda' suspects held in Italy

Italian police displayed explosives after the arrests

Italian police have arrested 28 Pakistani terror suspects they say formed "an al-Qaeda terrorist cell" in the southern city of Naples.

The men have been charged with association with international terrorism, illegal possession of explosive material, falsification of documents and receiving stolen goods

Italian police statement

The men were found with enough explosives to blow up a three-storey building in a routine check for illegal immigrants, officials said.

Maps identifying local US and Nato targets were also seized during the raid.

The suspects were later charged with terrorist offences, but Pakistan dismissed the accusations as baseless.

A statement from the Naples police headquarters hailed the "al-Qaeda" arrests but gave no details of any connection to Osama Bin Laden's network accused of the 11 September attacks on the US and other atrocities around the world.

The statement said: "The men have been arrested and charged with association with international terrorism, illegal possession of explosive material, falsification of documents and receiving stolen goods."

Police made the arrests after a raid in a housing complex in the old part of Naples city centre known to have a strong mafia presence.

They found the Pakistanis living in a group of apartments which had been knocked into one.

Legal aliens?

The authorities say they found 800 grams (28 ounces) of explosives - enough to blow up a three-storey building, according to police.

The suspects are also reported to have had maps - including one of the town of Bagnoli outside the city, which houses Nato's southern headquarters.

Italy's Ansa news agency said targets identified on the maps included the Nato base, the US Consulate in Naples and an American naval base at a nearby airport.

Documents in Arabic found in the raid are being translated.

Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Aziz Ahmed Khan said the charges appeared to be without foundation.

He told the BBC's Urdu Service that initial inquiries suggested four of the arrested men had valid work visas, while the others were in Italy legally and had applied for work permits.

Mr Khan said the Pakistani embassy in Rome had sought consular access to the men to ascertain what had happened.

Frontline

European intelligence agencies are helping the Italian authorities with the investigation.

Italians have arrested many terror suspects in recent months

The BBC's David Willey in Rome says the country is regarded by the US as a front-line target for Islamic terrorist organisations.

Dozens of people have been arrested in Italy in recent months as part of a crackdown on Islamic terror cells operating in the country.

The authorities have been considering increasing security at sensitive sites since five Moroccans suspected of planning terror attacks were arrested near Venice a week ago.

The five men were found to have maps of Nato bases in northern Italy and a plan of central London.

Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi pledged his support for the US war against terrorism during his visit to Washington on Tuesday.