see Ahmed Omar Abu Ali for US citizen charged on February 22, 2005 with plotting with al-Qaida to kill President Bush.
Ahmed Ali was a Pakistani novelist, diplomat and scholar. He was born in Delhi, India, in 1910. As a young man, he was involved in progressive literary movements. He contributed to "Aangarey" ('red hot embers', 1933), a collection of short stories that caused an uproar among fundamentalist Muslims. The book was banned in March 1933, the publisher was raided by police, and copies of the book were burnt in the streets.
His other books include: The Golden Tradition (translations of Urdu poetry); Ocean of Night; Of Rats and Diplomats; Twilight in Delhi; Al-Qur'an, a Contemporary Translation.
During the 1950's Ahmed Ali worked for the Pakistan Foreign Service, establishing embassies in Morocco and China.
Ali died in Karachi, Pakistan, on January 14th, 1994.
