DNA

Islamabad, Jul 7:  Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf on Friday narrowly escaped the third attempt on his life. His plane, which had taken off from the Chaklala military air base, near Rawalpindi, missed shots fired from 7.62mm improvised machine guns fixed on the roof of a two-storey house.

Musharraf, who was going to visit the flood-hit areas of Balochistan, landed safely in Turbat, a southwestern town in Pakistan, the media reported.

Though the Pakistani government and the military denied any attack had taken place, at least three channels — Geo, Dawn and ARY — telecast footage of the house from where the plane was targeted, that showed a large machine gun pointing upward.

The channels also spoke to residents of Rawalpindi who had seen two long-barrelled guns mounted on the roof of the house in the Asghar mall area near the air base. Pakistan intelligence sources said the house had been rented by a couple a few days ago.

The TV channels claimed the area was cordoned off by security forces. However, ISI spokesman, Major General Arshad Waheed, said the reports were baseless.