Pak sources: 5 Pak Army officers detained

[Screaming Skull]

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistani officials have arrested a retired Pakistani army major for his suspected role in an alleged plot that was hatched in the U.S. to assassinate the creator of controversial Danish cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad, the Pakistani army said Tuesday.

The news will fuel growing fears about the radicalization of Pakistan's army, and particularly the links between former army officers and Islamic extremists.

The Pakistani army said the major, who retired two years ago, was arrested a couple of months ago. Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas, the chief army spokesman, denied that any others were detained in connection with the Danish cartoons plot.

"He (the retired major) was in communication with those guys (Headley and Rana) in the States," Abbas said, adding: "Once you leave the army, you become a private citizen."

The Associated Press reported that five officers were detained, including at least two serving lieutenant colonels. Abbas called the AP account, which said that those arrested also included a retired brigadier general, a "fabrication" by those running a "campaign" to embarrass the Pakistan army.

The retired major was arrested in Rawalpindi, the garrison city that houses the Pakistan's military headquarters, according to a Pakistani security official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media.

Now being held by Pakistani intelligence, the retired officer may have been taken into custody on information the FBI gathered from its interrogation of the suspects in Chicago . It appears that he was in e-mail and telephone contact with the two men in Chicago.

While discipline within the ranks of the army has remained strong, a number of former officers have been involved in terrorist groups, including some who've attacked the Pakistani army. A former army medical orderly led an assault on the military headquarters last month.

Pakistani army officer arrested for alleged link to U.S. terror plot - Yahoo! News

 

[Abu Basit]

Daily Times

No serving army officer held for link to Chicago suspects: ISPR

ISLAMABAD: No serving army officer has been detained for possible links with two men arrested in Chicago on terrorism charges, army spokesman Major General Athar Abbas said on Wednesday.

Major General Abbas said a former army major was detained in connection with the case.

“He’s still in detention and is being questioned,” he said, adding that no serving officer has been detained in the case.

David Headley and Tahawwur Hussain Rana were arrested last month and accused of planning an attack on Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten.

Rana is a Pakistan-born Canadian citizen while Headley is an American citizen who had spent time in Pakistan.

According to US court documents, the Chicago pair discussed their planned attack on the Danish newspaper with members of Lashkar-e-Tayyaba (LT) group and Al Qaeda-linked militant Ilyas Kashmiri. LT has denied links with the Chicago arrests.

Authorities officially banned LT after it was blamed for a 2001 attack on the Indian parliament. reuters

 

[Nemesis]

Everyone makes mistakes, its not a fix rule that AP can't make mistake or the journalist gets a bogus story printed, we have seen many times that reputed newspapers or organizations getting into bogus or less accurate news stories.

The Associated Press is not a news agency per say. It is a news gatherer, whose stories are used by papers worldwide. They cannot afford to make mistakes. When they do, they provide retractions.

Ironic is, that when our reputed international newspapers or APP print story saying unnamed sources said India is involved in Balochistan or FATA, they becomes rubbish for others based on unnamed sources.

Firstly, sorry to state this but the APP is not a reputed news agency. It is the government owned press agency.

As far as this story not being credible - DAWN.COM | World | Pakistan ex-army officer detained over Chicago case

Not the same numbers of arrests i know. But it shows that the AFP story has some credibility.

About the unnamed sources - To protect the identity of the source, papers or channels worldwide do not publish the names of sources. It is a standard journalistic practice. How far would have the Watergate scandal gone if the Washington post had printed the name of Deep Throat?

Let time come, the picture will get more clear, sometimes the newspapers print news with half information or just when they get a wink of something like that.

Agreed.