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Boy scout saves leader of the Maldives (from assassination attempt)
Yahoo/AP ^

Posted on 01/08/2008 9:22:19 AM PST by nuconvert

Boy scout saves leader of the Maldives

By KRISHAN FRANCIS, Associated Press Writer

The president of the Maldives was saved from assassination Tuesday when a boy scout grabbed the knife of an attacker who had jumped out of a crowd greeting the leader, an official said.

President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom was not hurt, but his shirt was ripped when the attacker tried to stab him before the boy and security guards intervened during the event on the small island of Horafushi, said government spokesman Mohammad Shareef.

"This fellow in the crowd with a knife in his hand attempted to stab the president in his stomach," Shareef said by telephone from Male, the capital. "But a 15-year-old boy came in the way, and grabbed the knife. One brave boy saved the president's life."

The scout was identified as Mohamed Jaisham Ibrahim, who had lined up to welcome Gayoom, according to the president's Web site.

The boy was injured in the hand by the knife. "His wound was stitched but later he complained that he could not move some of his fingers, so he was flown by a sea plane to Male," Shareef said.

"There was blood on the president's shirt, but it was not his but the boy's. Still we got a physician to examine him," Shareef said.

A photograph of the boy on the Web site of the Haveeru daily showed him wearing a blue scouting uniform with a blue kerchief around his neck waiting in line to greet the president.

Boy scouts in the Maldives are similar to their U.S. counterparts, receiving training in first aid and participating in activities such as camping. Like in the U.S., their motto is "Be prepared."

The attacker had wrapped the knife in a Maldives national flag as he stood among a crowd waiting for Gayoom, 70.

A police Web site identified the attacker as Mohamed Murshid, 20. No motive was given, and other details were not disclosed.

Shareef, speaking by telephone from Male, said the assassination attempt may have had a "political motive," but it was too early to say if Islamic militants were involved. Opposition to Gayoom's three-decade rule has grown in recent years and there have also been concerns about increased Islamic militancy in the Muslim nation.

After the attack, Gayoom addressed the nation by radio, thanking the teenager and calling for calm, according to the Web site of the Minivan newspaper.

"We should not resort to violence even if we have differences between the parties," Gayoom was quoted as saying.

Gayoom has ruled this Indian Ocean atoll of 1,190 coral islands since 1978 and helped turn it into a major destination for tourists seeking a quiet vacation on virgin beaches surrounded by crystal blue waters.

However, the country of 350,000 people has also had its share of turmoil in recent months.

On Sept. 29, a homemade bomb blamed on Islamic militants exploded in a Male park, wounding 12 tourists. A week later, police and soldiers raided an island that was a reputed insurgent stronghold, sparking a battle with masked men armed with clubs and fishing spears that wounded more than 30 security officers.

Some high school graduates in the Maldives have studied religion at extremist institutions in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia and spread their radical beliefs across the islands, according to Rohan Gunaratna, a Singapore-based terrorism expert.

While many of the fundamentalists were not violent, a Maldivian was caught trying to join the Taliban in Afghanistan, another was arrested in India seeking to buy sniper rifles, and a third was jailed by U.S. authorities in Guantanamo Bay.

Gayoom has also faced opposition protests to his previously unchallenged rule in recent years. Under the pressure, he legalized opposition parties and agreed to hold the nation's first truly democratic election later this year.

Meanwhile, New Maldives Movement, a new opposition coalition formed to challenge Gayoom's three decades of rule in upcoming elections, condemned the attempted assassination.

"The NMM calls for an independent and speedy investigation into the attack and stresses the importance of making the results of the investigation public," the group said.


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: assassinationplot; banglist; boyscout; gayoom; hero; maldives; rescue

1 posted on 01/08/2008 9:22:20 AM PST by nuconvert
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To: nuconvert

“No motive was given, and other details were not disclosed.”

From the CIA World Factbook on the Maldives:

“Religions: Sunni Muslim”

Connection?


2 posted on 01/08/2008 9:28:09 AM PST by Slapshot68
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To: nuconvert

I think his community service requirement for Eagle has been met.


3 posted on 01/08/2008 9:29:11 AM PST by Waverunner ( "Think for yourselves and let others enjoy the privilege to do so too." Voltaire)
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To: Waverunner

LOL

How often do Boyscouts get “Presidential citations for their awards?”


4 posted on 01/08/2008 9:32:29 AM PST by Red6 (Come and take it.)
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To: Red6
The attacker had wrapped the knife in a Maldives national flag as he stood among a crowd waiting for Gayoom, 70
Oh yes, the old hide the knife in a flag trick.
5 posted on 01/08/2008 9:33:53 AM PST by mtairycitizen
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To: nuconvert
"The attacker had wrapped the knife in a Maldives national flag..."

Nice touch.

6 posted on 01/08/2008 9:35:07 AM PST by billorites (freepo ergo sum)
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To: nuconvert

I don’t think the Boy Scouts have to worry about being banned in the Maldives because they exclude gays....


7 posted on 01/08/2008 9:35:24 AM PST by CatoRenasci (Ceterum Censeo Arabiam Esse Delendam -- Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit)
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To: mtairycitizen

More par for the course in the countries flirting with “democracy.”

http://www.haveeru.com.mv/english/?page=details&id=20569


8 posted on 01/08/2008 9:35:42 AM PST by Liberals are Evil Socialists!
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To: nuconvert

I’m sending this one to a couple of my grandchildren who are big on scouting.

And, yes, I’m afraid the motives of the would-be assassin are only too obvious.


9 posted on 01/08/2008 9:38:33 AM PST by Cicero (Marcus Tullius)
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To: nuconvert

Be prepared!


10 posted on 01/08/2008 9:41:24 AM PST by trublu
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To: CatoRenasci
"I don’t think the Boy Scouts have to worry about being banned in the Maldives because they exclude gays...."

I believe in the Maldives they offer a Merit Badge for stoning gays.

11 posted on 01/08/2008 9:42:48 AM PST by billorites (freepo ergo sum)
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To: Waverunner
I'd say this fulfills the requirements for a number of merit badges.

-Stonewall Jackson (Eagle Class of 1992)

12 posted on 01/08/2008 9:44:01 AM PST by Stonewall Jackson (The Hunt for FRed November. 11/04/08)
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To: nuconvert
Should get one of these imo


13 posted on 01/08/2008 9:47:48 AM PST by Domandred (Eagles soar, but unfortunately weasels never get sucked into jet engines)
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To: Red6
Check out this Eagle Scout searching the flag for knives.

and another picture of the same sketchy looking Scout.


14 posted on 01/08/2008 9:48:07 AM PST by billorites (freepo ergo sum)
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"However, the country of 350,000 people has also had its share of turmoil in recent months." No connection to half it's population being named "Muhammad"..
15 posted on 01/08/2008 10:05:21 AM PST by RC51
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To: nuconvert
"Okay, Scouts, what was your good deed today? Eric?"

"I helped an old lady cross the street!"

"Very good! Jimmy?"

"I rescued a kitten from a tree!

Excellent! Gamel?"

"I saved a head of state from a potentially lethal knife attack by a deranged Islamofascist assassin."

"Um, alright, . . . anybody else? . . . Anyone?"

16 posted on 01/08/2008 10:26:28 AM PST by Hunton Peck (NYT-->English dictionary: "Subtle and nuanced" = incoherent and self-contradictory)
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To: Hunton Peck
Well, Mohamed, not Gamel. (Note to self: Read the whole story next time.)
17 posted on 01/08/2008 10:34:39 AM PST by Hunton Peck (NYT-->English dictionary: "Respected" = one who agrees with us.)
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To: nuconvert

Heard this on the radio news on the hour. Normally the crowd will jump an attacker as soon as they figure out what is happening. However, the pace of political assassination is increasing. This is somewhat like the runup to WW II.


18 posted on 01/08/2008 10:39:04 AM PST by RightWhale (Dean Koonz is good, but my favorite authors are Dun and Bradstreet)
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To: nuconvert
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1950143/posts
19 posted on 01/08/2008 10:52:11 AM PST by ASA Vet (Does Hillary share Huma with Bill?)
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To: billorites

My oldest son was in Jerry’s troop. I sent a photo of my son to President Ford and he sent a nice note back.


20 posted on 01/08/2008 10:55:24 AM PST by ASA Vet (Does Hillary share Huma with Bill?)
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