Kill-pope threat real – PNP official

INTELLIGENCE reports about a possible attack on Pope Francis should not be taken lightly and authorities should not be complacent because if something happened, the Philippines could be the world’s “center of attraction” in January, according to a top Philippine National Police (PNP) official.

Speaking on condition that he should not be named for lack of authority to speak on the matter, the police official, who was instrumental in the identification and eventual capture of al-Qaeda terrorist Ramzi Yousef in the 1990s, said his long experience as a police investigator handling such sensitive cases requires him to “respect” intelligence reports about a possible plot to harm the pope by those who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).