U.S. calls on Pakistan to arrest recently freed Islamist leader Hafiz Saeed

Hafiz Saeed (C) reacts to supporters as he walks out of court after a Pakistani court ordered his release from house arrest in Lahore, Pakistan November 22, 2017. REUTERS/Mohsin Raza

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A U.S. official on Friday said Washington is "deeply concerned" at the release from house arrest of a Pakistani Islamist accused of masterminding a bloody 2008 assault in the Indian city of Mumbai.

Hafiz Saeed, who had been under house arrest since January, was ordered freed by a Pakistani court this week and preached on Friday at a mosque in the eastern city of Lahore.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Saeed's organisation, Lashkar-e-Taiba, was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of civilians, including American citizens.

"The Pakistani government should make sure that he is arrested and charged for his crimes," Nauert said in a statement.

(Writing by Kay Johnson; Editing by Nick Macfie)