[indent=1]WASHINGTON — U.S. authorities have captured Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, the son-in-law of al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, two officials who have been briefed on the matter told USA TODAY Thursday.[/indent]

[indent=1]Both officials declined to be identified because they are not authorized to comment publicly. One described Ghaith as a “heavy-duty” operative; the other said Ghaith has been in custody for some time and is scheduled to make a first court appearance within the next few days.[/indent]

[indent=1]Rep. Peter King, R.-NY, who told the Associated Press that the capture also was confirmed to him by U.S. law enforcement officials, Thursday called the capture a “very significant victory” in the ongoing fight against al-Qaeda. He credited the CIA and FBI with catching Ghaith in Jordan within the last week.[/indent]

[indent=1]King said Ghaith took part in the Sept. 11, 2001, plot against the World Trade Center and Pentagon.[/indent]

[indent=1]”Definitely, one by one, we are getting the top echelons of al-Qaeda,” King said. “I give the (Obama) administration credit for this: it’s steady and it’s unrelenting and it’s very successful.”[/indent]

[indent=1]The Turkish newspaper Hürriyet reported that Ghaith was passing through Jordan, on his way to Kuwait, shortly after leaving Turkey.[/indent]

[indent=1]The newspaper said that Ghaith was taken into custody more than a month ago at a luxury hotel in Ankara, the Turkish capital. But Turkish officials decided he had not committed any crime in Turkey and released him, the newspaper reported.[/indent]

[indent=1]In Ankara, Turkish officials refused to confirm Ghaith’s deportation or his capture in Jordan to The Associated Press. In Amman, the Jordanian capital, a security official said he had no information on the CIA arrest in Jordan.[/indent]