A Question of Timing

No one will argue that an arrest of any top al Qaeda suspect is a good thing, but the timing of the announcement just smells, especially considering they held it for 4-5 days...

"Pakistan has captured Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, a top al Qaeda suspect...Ghailani was seized early Sunday" but "the news came just hours before US presidential candidate John Kerry delivered his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Boston" on Thursday. Pakistani officials "have rejected allegations that they delayed the announcement for four days to obtain maximum publicity... But in the arrests of other high-profile al-Qaida targets in Pakistan, including Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and Ramzi, the news media received word almost immediately."
- Washington Post, 7/30/04; Christian Science Monitor, 7/30/04
 
VERSUS

"An official who works under [the Pakistani intelligence] director informed The New Republic that the Pakistanis 'have been told at every level that apprehension or killing of [high value terrorist targets] before the election is [an] absolute must.' What's more, this source claims that Bush administration officials have told their Pakistani counterparts they have a date in mind for announcing this achievement: 'The last ten days of July deadline has been given repeatedly by visitors to Islamabad and during [Pakistani Intelligence Director Ehsan ul-Haq's] meetings in Washington.'" According to the ISI official, a White House aide told Pakistani intelligence last spring that it would be best if the arrest or killing of any high value terrorist target were announced during the Democratic convention.
- The New Republic, 7/19/04