U.S. officials called the arrest "very significant." U.S. investigators say Attash -- also identified as Tawfiq al Attash -- is a former bodyguard of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and was the mastermind of the Cole bombing, which killed 17 U.S. sailors. Attash also is suspected of having a hand in planning the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York and Washington. Those attacks killed more than 3,000 people and triggered the U.S. war to oust al Qaeda from Afghanistan. Investigators believe Attash discussed the Cole bombing and the September 11 plot with al Qaeda operative Ramzi Binalshibh, also in custody, and two of the September 11 hijackers in Malaysia in January 2000. Pakistani authorities identified Attash as a Yemeni national and said his arrest averted a "major terrorist attack." Police found 150 kilograms (330 pounds) of high explosives and a large quantity of guns and ammunition when he was arrested, the Information Ministry said. Attash is believed to have lost a leg in combat in Afghanistan