LAHORE, 16 March 2003 — Pakistani police yesterday submitted to an anti-terrorism court their charges against a doctor and his brother accused of harboring senior Al-Qaeda figures in their home here, court officials said.

Police formally submitted the chargesheet against doctor Ahmed Javed Khawaja and his brother Naveed accusing them of sheltering terrorists, attempted murder and illegal weapons possession, defense counsel Pervaiz Inayat Malik said.

The accused, who have been in custody since their capture in a midnight raid on their home by US and Pakistani intelligence commandos on Dec. 18, were produced in the anti-terrorism court amid tight security.

Police investigator Baqar Hussain Shah also submitted a report of the investigation and a record of the case in the court, which is sitting in Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat jail for security reasons.

The prosecution has also supplied copies of four foreign passports allegedly recovered from the suspects, Malik said.

Judge Maqbool Bajwa allowed four close relatives of the accused to meet them before adjourning the proceedings until March 25.

Malik said the court was likely to formally indict Khawaja and his brother at its next hearing.

“We have been told by the court that Dr. Khawaja and his brother will be charged on March 25,” Malik said.

The Interior Ministry has accused them of hiding at least four North African Al-Qaeda directors in their home in the eastern city of Lahore.

They are also alleged to have fired on officers during the raid.

Public prosecutor Rana Bakhtiar said after the court hearing that he has strong evidence to prove that the suspects were harboring Al-Qaeda men.

But defense lawyer Malik said, “We will prove that Dr. Khawaja and his brother are innocent.”

Dr. Khawaja, a gastroenterologist, and his brother, a businessman, attended the hearing. They have denied having Al-Qaeda links.

As is typical in such cases, reporters are barred from the proceedings. The case is being heard in a court set up for security reasons at a prison in the eastern city of Lahore.

Two of Dr. Khawaja’s sons — US citizens Omar Karar Khawaja and Khyzar Ali Khawaja — and his brother’s son, Canadian Usman Ali Khawaja, were detained for three months after the December arrests, but authorities ordered them released March 6 after the Supreme Court upheld a ruling that there was insufficient evidence against them.

After their release they said they had been questioned by FBI.