A survivor of the horrific Birkby firebombs attack hailed the police for arresting a key suspect.
Mohammed Shafique - who managed to escape the early-hours inferno which killed eight of his relatives - said the efforts of West Yorkshire detectives deserved praise.
And he said: “Hopefully, this will now bring closure to our family although we can never forgot those we have lost and the events of that night”.
He spoke hours after the Examiner revealed details of the arrest of Shahid Mohammed some 4,000 miles away from Huddersfield, in Pakistan.
Legal moves have now started to bring Mohammed back to the UK to face a court, after he skipped bail when arrested days after the murders in May 2002.
Experts have warned the process could drag on as Britain has no extradition treaty with Pakistan.
Mr Shafique said: “It is excellent news for the family. It has been a long, long time, 12 years and 252 days to be exact, since we learned he had gone on the run.
“We have joined the police in making many appeals for help through the Examiner and we always hoped this day would come.
“But it is only a first step. There are now moves through the courts to get him back here to face a court and I don’t know who that will pan out.
“Hopefully it will bring us some closure to a terrible chapter in our lives but we will never forget.
“Each May we relive the anniversary of what happened and I would dearly love to see Mohammed in a court before that date this year.
“It is great news for West Yorkshire Police, who never gave up their quest. They came so near on many occasions but have now finally had him arrested.
“They never gave up hope and we never gave up hope”.
Click here for a timeline of the events leading up to Shahid Mohammed's detention in Pakistan
Clr Mehboob Khan, a local councillor and trustee of the appeal fund set up by the Examiner to support the family in the aftermath of the attack, also welcomed the news.
“It is really great news after an awful long time.
“The family never gave up hope and it will bring some closure to them and the whole community who went through so much”.
Sean Curley, head of law at the University of Huddersfield, said: “There is no extradition treaty with Pakistan but Pakistan does have an extradition law.
“That could allow people suspected of what would be regarded as a criminal offence in either country to be extradited”.
Shahid Mohammed was arrested days after the fire which killed five young children, their mother, grandmother and uncle.
The victims were six-month-old Najeebah Nawaz, Aneesa Nawaz, two, Tayyaba Bootall, three, Ateeqa Nawaz, five, Rabiah Bootall, 10, Muhammed Ateeq-Ur-Rehman, 18, Nafeesa Aziz aged 35 who were all killed on the night, and. Zaib-U-Nisa, 54, who died in hospital a week later.
