Washington, June 27: FBI agents arrested seven people during a series of anti-terrorist raids in the Washington region early today, a Federal Bureau of Investigation official said. A TV network quoted intelligence officials as saying that the men were suspected of providing material support to Lashkar-e-Taiba, a radical Muslim group battling Indian forces in Kashmir.

Three people were arrested in the state of Maryland, three in Virginia and one in Pennsylvania, said the FBI official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The official said all seven were suspected of involvement in terrorist activities but gave no other details.

The US authorities have made no special terrorist alert warning in recent days.

The TV network said there was no evidence the seven were working on a terrorist plot against US targets.

The US put Lashkar-e-Taiba on its list of foreign terrorist organisations in October 2001.

The group was banned by Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, who is currently on a visit to the United States, and its assets were frozen in January last year.

Lashkar-e-Taiba has carried out attacks against Indian targets in Kashmir since 1993, and was blamed by the Indian government for a strike against parliament in New Delhi in December 2001, which sparked months of tension between India and Pakistan.

Pakistani sources here said that they were unaware of the arrests.

Bureau Report