Red tape holds up UK terror probe

Dr Haneef has been held for more than a week

Bureaucratic wrangling between India and Australia is hampering the inquiry into the suspected failed bomb attacks in London and at Glasgow airport.

Last week, Australian police arrested Indian doctor Mohamed Haneef as he tried to leave Australia on a one-way ticket to India.

An Australian officer is in Bangalore to look into Dr Haneef's background.

But Indian investigators have refused to share information, saying they have not received the proper paperwork.

The inquiry is linked to the suspected attempted car bombings in central London and the airport in Paisley at the end of last month.

Proper channels

The Australian federal police officer arrived in India over the weekend to check up on Dr Haneef, whose wife, newborn child and extended family live in the southern city of Bangalore.

But India's Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) says it will not share information with the Australian officer until it receives a court-issued document relating to the case.

The matter has been taken up by Australia's defence minister Brendan Nelson who is now in Delhi for talks with government officials.

The Indian authorities have said they want to go through the proper channels and that the hold-up should not be misinterpreted as non-cooperation.

A jeep was driven into the front of Glasgow airport

That said, India consular officials in Brisbane, where Dr Haneef is being detained without charge, have expressed concerns over the handling of the case.

They have insisted, for instance, that he be allowed to make a telephone call home - a request which has now been granted - but the 27-year-old Indian doctor spoke to his wife for no more than a minute.

Raids

Dr Haneef has been in police custody for nine days.

He was picked up at Brisbane airport on 2 July after a tip-off from British police.

He was reportedly carrying a one-way ticket to India, although his family insist he was travelling home to see his wife and newborn daughter.

Australian police have carried out a number of raids relating to the arrest, including a search of Dr Haneef's home and place of work on Queensland's Gold Coast.

More than 200 officers are now involved, and one of their most pressing tasks is to sift through more than 30,000 computer files.

The inquiry is linked to the suspected attempted car bombings in central London and Glasgow at the end of last month.

Dr Haneef is one of eight people who have been detained over the suspected attempted car bombings in London and Glasgow.

The others - all linked to the medical profession - were picked up in the UK.

One man, 27-year-old Iraqi doctor Bilal Abdullah, has been charged in the UK courts over the incidents.