South Korea's intelligence agency said on Wednesday it was investigating a case in which a suspected member of Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network had entered and left the country earlier this year, undetected by authorities.

The National Intelligence Service official confirmed a report in the national daily newspaper JoongAng Ilbo that the suspected al Qaeda member -- who was later arrested in another unnamed country and is now in U.S. custody -- had entered South Korea.

"The NIS is now investigating details of the al Qaeda member's infiltration," said the official, who requested anonymity.

The JoongAng Ilbo, which said South Korea had received a tip from U.S. intelligence authorities, reported that a key concern was whether al Qaeda obtained information on the U.S. diplomatic or military facilities in South Korea. South Korea hosts 37,000 U.S. troops at about 100 installations across the country.

The report came as South Korea dealt with intelligence reports of an al Qaeda suicide bomb threat against its embassy in Afghanistan. About 40 South Koreans reside in Kabul and Seoul has deployed 205 construction and medical troops in the country.

Three South Korean diplomats in the Afghan capital Kabul were evacuated to Pakistan this week, while a small staff stayed on, a foreign ministry official said in Seoul. "Some officials are still staying in Afghanistan to protect South Korean citizens and to keep contacts between the Afghan government and our government," the official said.

"We have received an intelligence report of a possible attack in Kabul during Ramadan," the official said. The Muslim holy month of Ramadan ends on November 26.

In addition to the South Korean troops serving in Afghanistan, Seoul has had 675 medical and engineering troops deployed in Iraq since May.

South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun is close to a politically delicate final decision on additional troops in response to a U.S. request for more than 5,000 combat soldiers.

Local media are reporting that Seoul is leaning toward sending 3,000 troops in February or March.

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