ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan denied on Wednesday that al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, the alleged mastermind behind the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, had been arrested in Pakistan.
Pakistan's interior minister described as baseless and unfounded the report by an official of a small Pakistani political party. Officials in Washington said they had no information to back up the report.
"This is absolutely unfounded and absolutely baseless," Pakistan's Interior Minister Faisal Saleh Hayat told Reuters.
Other senior Pakistan officials also denied the report.
A U.S. administration spokesman in Washington said: "We have no information to substantiate that claim." That view was echoed by two other U.S. officials.
Pakistani politician Agha Murtaza Pooya, the deputy head of the Pakistan Awami Tehreek, told Reuters he said bin Laden was in custody but he did not know where he was being held.
"I just said he's in custody. I didn't say where he was captured or what... I said he's in custody. And in custody of those that are chasing him."
The governments of Afghanistan and Germany also denied the report. "We have no knowledge of that," said a spokesman for Germany's BND foreign intelligence service.
In London, the dollar rose briefly against the euro and the Swiss franc, and equity futures in the United States were roiled by the report, originally sourced to an Iranian radio station and picked up by the BBC monitoring service.
Originally posted by: aves2k
Pakistan Denies Report of Bin Laden Arrest
Originally posted by: Shiva112
Originally posted by: aves2k
Pakistan Denies Report of Bin Laden Arrest
of course they deny it...everyone knows they've given him "unofficial" assylum.
Originally posted by: conjur
Whatever happened with that story of two of his sons supposedly being caught? Another of those 'unconfirmed' reports?
Personally, I wouldn't doubt it if they all are captured but the U.S. doesn't want to confirm it and keep their whereabouts unknown until the war with Iraq either starts or comes to a diplomatic resolution.
Originally posted by: Fencer128
I'll wait until it appears on the BBC.
Originally posted by: aves2k
Originally posted by: Fencer128
I'll wait until it appears on the BBC.
Here is the BBC's article:
Pakistan denies Bin Laden arrest
Issued by the Department of Department of Redundancy. 😉This is absolutely unfounded and absolutely baseless
Originally posted by: yowolabi
Originally posted by: Shiva112
Originally posted by: aves2k
Pakistan Denies Report of Bin Laden Arrest
of course they deny it...everyone knows they've given him "unofficial" assylum.
Then why have they been helpful in capturing other Al Qaeda members? Doesn't make much sense unless you're into conspiracy theories.
Pooya said he heard of bin Laden's arrest from credible sources "who I have reasons to believe have never given me wrong information."
He added he believed news of the arrest was being held back to coincide with the start of military action against Iraq