NEW YORK: A man suspected of association with al Qaeda has been arrested here and charged with providing material support to the terror network and possessing and using firearms to promote violence.

The indictment of Minh Quang Pham was announced by Preet Bharara, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York and other security officials.

According to court papers, in December 2010, Pham travelled from Britain to Yemen where he showed up at the principal base of operations for al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

While in Yemen, Pham took an oath of allegiance to AQAP, carried an automatic assault rifle, obtained training from the group and helped it prepare online propaganda.

Pham returned to the United Kingdom from Yemen in 2011. Prior to his arrest, Pham was held by British authorities in immigration custody.

If convicted on all counts, Pham would face a maximum sentence of life in prison, with a mandatory minimum sentence of 40 years.

His nationality has not been announced.

“The international law enforcement cooperation that led to today's arrest of Minh Quang Pham, an alleged associate of a terrorist organization committed to killing Americans both here and abroad, underscores our joint commitment to identifying, prosecuting, and punishing those who would do harm to our country and our people,” Bharara said in a statement.