Boy scout saves president from assassination

A boy scout saved the president of the Maldives from assassination today when he grabbed an attacker's knife as he was about to strike.

Mohamed Jaisham Ibrahim, 15, suffered badly cut hands in the attack, but President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom escaped unharmed when the knifeman leapt from a crowd of well-wishers.

"This fellow in the crowd with a knife in his hand attempted to stab the president in his stomach," a government spokesman said.

"But a 15-year-old boy came in the way and grabbed the knife. One brave boy saved the president's life."

The attacker had wrapped the knife in a Maldives national flag as he stood among a crowd waiting for Mr Gayoom to arrive on Hoarafushi islet.

"There was blood on the president's shirt, but it was not his but the boy's. Still we got a physician to examine him," the spokesman said.

The teenager, who had been in a line waiting to welcome the president, was flown to Male for treatment.

After the attack, Mr Gayoom addressed the nation in a radio broadcast, thanking the teenager and calling for calm.

"We should not resort to violence even if we have differences between the parties," he said.

Mr Gayoom, 70, has ruled the Indian Ocean country of 1,190 coral islands since 1978 and helped turn it into a major destination for tourists.

However, the country of 350,000 people has also had its share of turmoil in recent months.

In September a home-made bomb blamed on Islamic militants exploded in a park in the capital, Male, wounding 12 tourists.

A week later, police and soldiers raided an island that was a reputed insurgent stronghold, sparking a battle with masked men armed with clubs and fishing spears that wounded more than 30 security officers.