President of Mobilink Pakistan, A.L.F Barry was targeted by unidentified gunmen on his way home from work on Wednesday. Barely escaping injury, Barry was in his car at the time of the incident, driving the streets of Islamabad.
No one has taken responsibility for the attack, however authorities are questioning whether the incident is part of a series of violent acts directed at foreigners by militants protesting Pakistan’s involvement in the US-led war on terrorism in Afghanistan, reported AP.
Egyptian-born American, Barry is the Chief Executive and President of Mobilink, majority owned by Egypt’s Orascom Telecom Holdings (OTH). The company is Pakistan’s largest GSM provider with close to one million subscribers.
OTH recently denied rumours that it plans to sell its operations in Pakistan. Following the recent sale of its Jordanian unit Fastlink, OTH was inundated by reports that its Pakistan operation Mobilink could be next. The company rejected any plans to withdraw from the Pakistani market however, did confirm it is in advanced stages of the divestiture of nine out of 10 of its, sub-Saharan TeleCel subsidiaries. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
