Reuters lands exclusive on imminent Pakistan offensive

Reuters tracked down Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik in Singapore on Oct. 11, coming away with exclusive news that a long-planned operation in the militant stronghold of South Waziristan was now “imminent”. Malik’s comments came at the end of a day of dramatic developments in Pakistan, where militants attacked the army’s headquarters and took dozens of hostages. Malik told Reuters that the government would hit back, saying it was not just Taliban militants who were involved in the attack but also al Qaeda, a sign that a campaign to destabilise nuclear-capable Pakistan could be entering a more intense and dangerous stage. Malik had kept a low profile during his Singapore trip as the bloody events unfolded back home, but the minister took two Reuters journalists into the back of his car on the way from a conference and the interview rolled there. Within moments of the story’s publication, Malik’s comments topped the news bulletin of the BBC` and it was the main story on the BBC’s website. The interview was also carried by many other media around the globe.