Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's personal security has been increased following reports that some foreign terrorist outfits planned to carry out attacks against him even as Islamabad has handed over three of the six Al Qaeda suspects to the United States.
Stating this, local daily Dawn said Pakistan's Interior Ministry has issued fresh directives to tighten Musharraf's security specially when his convoy moved between twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
Meanwhile, on Friday Pakistan has handed over three Al Qaeda militants to the US. Those handed over included Waleed Mohammad bin Attash, a Yemeni national wanted by the American police in connection with the attack on American warship, USS Cole.
Waleed was arrested by Pakistan Rangers in a pre-dawn raid on the Super Highway. A large quantity of explosives and weapons were seized in the operation.
Along with him, Abu Ammar and Ali Abd al-Aziz were also handed over to the US authorities, officials here said. The three were part of the six who have been arrested on Tuesday from Karachi. Of the three, Aziz was stated to be the nephew of Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, Al Qaeda's chief operating office arrested from Rawalpindi recently.
The number of suspects detained on leads provided by the six people arrested in Karachi earlier has now risen to 20. "We are interrogating them and some of them will be released if they are not linked in any way with the Al Qaeda network," Dawn quoted officials as saying.
Pakistan official said that during interrogation the detained Al Qaeda operatives disclosed their links in the US consulate bombing and the killing of US journalist Daniel Pearl in Karachi. The terrorist had plans to carry out fresh terrorist attacks on the US consulate and other American and western interests, they said.
The suspects wanted to make use of the local Pakistanis who were affiliated with the banned militant organisations to carry out suicide attacks against the US interests in Pakistan.