BELFAST, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Northern Ireland police said on Saturday they had been given a further 48 hours to question a man arrested earlier this week on suspicion of links with al Qaeda.

Abbas Boutrab, 25, an Algerian national, was arrested last Monday at Maghaberry prison near Belfast where he had been held along with five other immigration detainees for the past six months.

Police were given a 72-hour extension on Wednesday and can now hold Boutrab until Monday afternoon — following Saturday’s ruling by a high court judge in Belfast — when he must either be charged or returned to prison.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) have said they are questioning Boutrab about "serious crime" and "possessing information likely to be useful to terrorists".