15-year-old boy scout saves Maldives president

A 15-YEAR-OLD boy scout intervened to stop a man from stabbing Maldives President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom with a kitchen knife yesterday, a move the leader's spokesman said saved him from assassination.

Gayoom, who was unharmed in the incident, paid tribute to teenager Mohamed Jaisham, who was wearing the characteristic green scout uniform with scarf and woggle at the time and foiled the attack by wrestling with the man and grabbing the blade.

The boy's hand was badly wounded.

"I have been saved thanks to Mohamed Jaisham and Allah," Gayoom said in a national radio address after the incident.

In a twist of fate, Gayoom holds the honorary title of "Chief Scout of the Maldives."

The attack took place on the island of Hoarafushi.

"He was shaking hands with supporters, when a young man came and tried to stab him with a large kitchen knife," Presidential spokesman Mohamed Shareef said.

"He was saved by a boy who moved in the way and tried to grab the knife and suffered a serious injury to his hand," he added. The attacker, aged in his early 20s, has been arrested and is being interrogated. Shareef said residents on the island described the man as having extreme religious views.

Agencies