‘Arroyo target of plot’

MANILA (Philippines)—Militants linked to al-Qaida plotted to assassinate the Philippine president and bomb foreign embassies, officials said Thursday. Military chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon said the assassination plot allegedly was hatched by the extremist Abu Sayyaf group and its Indonesia-based ally, Jemaah Islamiyah.
Opposition groups dismissed the allegation as government scare tactics to prevent people from joining protests Friday to demand Arroyo’s resignation over corruption charges.—Agencies