[lbo-talk] New Al Qaeda plot to kill Musharraf foiled (compare and contrast)

[Dwayne Monroe]

It seems the Pakistani government is not speaking with one voice on this 
'foiled plot' business.  As I said before, the undoubted reality of 
Jihadis and their efforts against Musharraf notwithstanding, caution is 
always warranted when evaluating dramatic claims.

.d.

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Govt denies reports of new attempt on Musharraf

By Our Staff Reporter

ISLAMABAD, May 6: Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed on Friday 
dismissed as baseless reports circulated by some foreign news agencies 
that intelligence agencies had foiled a new attempt by terrorists to 
assassinate President Gen Pervez Musharraf. The minister said there was 
no truth whatsoever in the reports.

A senior official of an intelligence agency also denied the reports and 
said he was unaware of any new plot to assassinate the president. 
Quoting unnamed intelligence officials, a foreign news agency had filed 
a report earlier in the day saying that a new plot by Al Qaeda militants 
to assassinate President Musharraf had been foiled.

The reports said that Mushtaq Ahmed and Mohammad Arshad were found to be 
involved in the plot. Quoting a “top intelligence official”, one report 
said: “First we smashed the gang plotting a new attack on Mr Musharraf 
and then a week later we netted two Arabs, including Al Libbi.”

from Dawn at -- <http://www.dawn.com/2005/05/07/top8.htm >

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And let's revisit, for comparison purposes, the original Hindustan Times 
story:

HindustanTimes.com

Friday, May 6, 2005

Pakistan foils new Al-Qaeda plot to kill Musharraf

Agence France-Presse

Islamabad, May 6, 2005

Pakistani intelligence agents have foiled a new plot by Al-Qaeda 
militants to assassinate President Pervez Musharraf, security officials 
said.

Seven conspirators were arrested in a number of raids in central Punjab 
province in late April, one week before the capture of Al-Qaeda alleged 
number three Abu Faraj al-Libbi in a northwestern region, security 
officials said.

The group included Mushtaq Ahmed, a junior Air Force official who 
escaped from jail late last year after being sentenced to death for his 
involvement in a 2003 attempt to eliminate Musharraf, and who was 
recaptured last week.

"First we smashed the gang plotting a new attack on Musharraf and then a 
week later we netted two Arabs including al-Libbi," a top intelligence 
official said.

Officials said the Musharraf assassination plotters were headed by an 
Al-Qaeda militant named Mohammad Arshad...