ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Pakistan said Tuesday it had captured a spokesman for the Taliban, the militia that ruled Afghanistan until it was ousted in a U.S.-led invasion in 2001.

Mullah Hakim Latifi, who has often claimed responsibility for attacks on U.S.-led coalition forces, was caught in the southwestern Baluchistan province after using a local cell phone, Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said.

Baluchistan borders Afghanistan, and members of the Taliban are believed to have sought refuge in the area after the invasion.

"It is a big success. We were looking for him for a long time," Ahmed said.

Ahmed said Pakistan had not made any decision to hand him over to Kabul.

"It is premature to talk about it. First, our security agencies will question him," he said.

Interior Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao confirmed the arrest. Another Interior Ministry official said Latifi had been using a Pakistani cell phone and would be moved to Islamabad, the Pakistani capital, for questioning.

"He was tracked down on a tip in a Pakistani town," the official said. He said some associates of Latifi were also captured, but did not identify them.

However, a second security official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to the media, said Latifi was captured from a home in Quetta, the capital of southwestern Baluchistan province.

"He was alone there. He did not offer any resistance," he said.

The official said Latifi told authorities that he had no information about the whereabouts of Taliban leader, Mullah Omar, although he said he was hiding somewhere in Afghanistan.

Sherpao described Latifi as the Taliban's chief spokesman. But information from Latifi in the past has sometimes proven exaggerated or untrue. Afghan and U.S. military officials say he is believed to speak for factions of the rebel group, although his exact ties to the Taliban leadership cannot be verified.

Latifi was not a prominent figure in the Taliban when the Islamic militia was in power but became a media contact after its ouster.

"The Afghan Defense Ministry appreciates this action by the Pakistani government," ministry spokesman Gen. Mohammed Zaher said.

The arrest came less than a week after President Hamid Karzai praised Pakistan for helping Afghanistan hold peaceful legislative elections on Sept. 18. Pakistan had deployed additional troops to prevent Taliban and al Qaeda fighters from crossing the border into Afghanistan and disrupting the election.

Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have sometimes been strained because of Afghan suspicions that rebels are using Pakistan as a staging area for cross-border attacks. Pakistan denies it.

Rebels are active in the volatile south and east of Afghanistan, and have stepped up attacks this year. More than 1,300 people, including hundreds of militants, have died in the past seven months.

Pakistan was once a supporter of the Taliban, but withdrew its support and became a chief ally of the coalition forces that ousted the militia.

On Tuesday, a panel composed of senior military and diplomatic representatives from Afghanistan, Pakistan and coalition forces in Afghanistan met near the Pakistani capital to discuss how to counter insurgents.

"All parties further agreed that continued cooperation and coordination to enhance security was essential to long-term success against al Qaeda and terrorist movements," the U.S. military said.