KARACHI, Pakistan — Pakistan released an FBI agent on bond Thursday after three days in custody, officials said.
The American man was detained after airport authorities found him carrying ammunition and three knives Monday as he was about to board a flight for the Pakistani capital, Islamabad.
The arrest threatened to open a new chapter in troubled relations between Pakistan and the U.S., which have been uneasy allies since the Sept. 11 terror attacks. But the relatively fast release, if confirmed, suggested efforts to defuse any tensions.
A law enforcement official in the U.S. has said the man was an FBI agent and said he was in Pakistan as part of a multi-agency, anti-corruption program. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the diplomatic sensitivities of the case, said the agent appeared to have made a mistake and didn't mean to carry bullets aboard the plane.
U.S. State Department spokesman Jen Psaki confirmed the detention Wednesday and said the U.S. was coordinating with Pakistani authorities to resolve the matter. She did not identify the man.
Read tomorrow's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.