Reply #74: CNN: Pakistan does not have body

[IndianaGreen]

Fascinating to watch how the much ballyhood claim of the "death" of an Al-Qaeda operative is beginning to crumble even as the MSM continues to repeat the earlier claims by Pakistani President Musharraf.

The story began to unravel this morning when CNN's correspondent in Islamabad told the morning anchors that the "body is missing."

Several hours later, CNN finally decides to make mention of the missing body on their website. Please notice that they stick that part in the middle of the earlier story:

Pakistan does not have body

Musharraf said Rabia was killed north of the town of Miran Shah, but did not shed any light on how he died.

His press secretary and army spokesman Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan said Pakistan's government does not have custody of Rabia's body, adding that it was "probably taken away by his comrades."

When asked by CNN if Rabia was killed in a missile strike, Sultan said, "This death was the result of an accidental explosion."

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/12/03/pakistan.rabia/index.html

There is still confusion as to the nationality of Rabia. Al-Jazeera, BBC News, and other foreign sources have referred to him as a Syrian, yet some American news accounts call him an Egyptian.

Can't these guys get their stories straight?:

The officials say Rabia, an Egyptian in his 30s, was responsible for external planning of terrorism, including terror strikes against the United States.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/12/03/pakistan.rabia/index.html

In another report, Pakistan's Dawn newspaper said on Saturday that Rabia, believed to be of Syrian origin, was killed in a missile attack on a mud-walled home in Isori, a village east of Miran Shah.

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/2CC9A3F4-DE33-4FBF-A71B-2C7FC1591425.htm

On edit:

If Pakistan does not have Rabia's body, how could they claim that they identified the body by means of DNA testing?:

The sources told NBC News Rabia was one of five men killed at a safehouse located in the village of Asorai, in western Pakistan, near the town of Mirali. Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said Rabia’s remains were identified via a DNA test.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10303175/