Pakistan PM Under Terror Threat in 3 Cities

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani is under a serious threat, intelligence agencies have claimed in a letter addressed to concerned quarters of the government, including the Ministry of Interior, sources told The News.

The PM could be targeted in Islamabad, Lahore or Multan, the sources, quoting the letter, added. Tribal area based terrorists are planning to target Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani through a combination of explosion and a suicide attack, or gorilla attack similar to the Sri Lankan cricket team and the Manawan police training centre, the report said. Three teams of terrorists are reported to be working simultaneously at Islamabad, Lahore and Multan.

Meanwhile, to counter serious threats to Islamabad, the federal government has called troops of the Northern Area Scouts (a paramilitary force under the Army command) to aid the civil administration in protecting important personalities and sensitive installations of the capital city, Interior Ministry sources told The News.

The ministry has asked concerned authorities to arrange the required force of the Northern Area Scouts (NAS) to counter threats from extremists. At least, 20 companies of the NAS are required to tackle any possible untoward situation, the sources said. The NAS would be deployed at sensitive installations and included in the motorcade of important personalities.

SSP (Security Division) Zubair Hashmi, when contacted, confirmed the report. A proposal to summon the NAS has been sent to the concerned authorities. Meanwhile, the capital city police are hunting for an explosive laden ambulance and a car bearing a Press Plate on the information of an intelligence agency, sources said. However, it could be a mock exercise, they added.

Source

Official Says Bombers Targeted Children On School Trip In Cairo

Bombers targeted a French school trip to Cairo when they attacked a popular tourist site in which a 17-year-old French girl died, officials said.

Egyptian police arrested three people after Sunday’s bomb attack at the Khan al-Khalili market near the Hussein mosque, The Times of London reported Monday. The 20-plus wounded included 17 other French teens, a German, and several Saudis and Egyptians.

“Three people there were arrested on the site as suspects after the attack,” a police official said. “Others are being questioned as witnesses.”

An unexploded bomb was found nearby the blast site. Police detonated the second device safely

The teenagers were part of a group of 54 teenage students from Paris on a last-minute visit to the bazaar before heading home. The group returned from Cairo to Paris Monday, the British newspaper said.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Prime Minister Francois Fillon denounced the incident.

“The government condemns with the greatest firmness this criminal act of blind and absurd violence,” Fillon said. “More than ever, France stands beside the Egyptian Republic as it faces this test and fights against terrorism.”

Police blocked off the area, full of cafes and souvenir stands, and used bomb-detecting dogs to find the second device.

Witnesses told The Times one of the bombs appeared to have been thrown from a passing motorbike, while others said that the devices were tossed from a nearby rooftop.

via Source