In yet another twist to the unfathomable Bhutto assassination: news sources reported this morning that the Pakistani police has arrested a teenager who was allegedly part of a five-man squad in the plot to kill the former PM last month. According to the AFP news agency, "The suspect, 15-year-old Aitezaz Shah, was arrested from the northwestern city of Dera Ismail Khan on Friday while planning a suicide bombing during Ashoura." The Associated Press cited an intelligence official, who said "the 15-year-old told investigators that the five-person squad was dispatched to Rawalpindi, where Bhutto was killed, by Baitullah Mehsud." Newswires cited Interior Ministry spokesman Iqbal Cheema who stated he had not received information about any arrests, or about any new developments in the Bhutto case.
The development further supports previous government allegations that Mehsud and Al Qaeda-linked militants were behind the assassination. However, what's interesting is whether the recent news - the CIA announcement and the arrest of a teen who allegedly confessed to the crime - changes perceptions about who killed Bhutto. Although the majority of people in the sidebar poll affirm that AQ was behind the assassination, a significant portion of those polled, as well as those surveyed in the recent Gallup Pakistan poll, suspect that government agencies were complicit in the attack. So here's a question - does this change your mind? Or are you still a skeptic?
The development further supports previous government allegations that Mehsud and Al Qaeda-linked militants were behind the assassination. However, what's interesting is whether the recent news - the CIA announcement and the arrest of a teen who allegedly confessed to the crime - changes perceptions about who killed Bhutto. Although the majority of people in the sidebar poll affirm that AQ was behind the assassination, a significant portion of those polled, as well as those surveyed in the recent Gallup Pakistan poll, suspect that government agencies were complicit in the attack. So here's a question - does this change your mind? Or are you still a skeptic?
2 comments:
Having a vague idea of how the agencies go about their business one always has to remain skeptical. In a country like Pakistan where an organization like the ISI has influence, one can never be sure of the "who dunnit's".
Interesting to see how this person will be related, as one would assume that the person who actually killed Bhutto died in the subsequent suicide blast.
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