PAKISTAN: Two years ago his face had stared out of the pages of every newspaper in Pakistan. Billed, along with five others, as the nation's most wanted, Mati-ur Rehman was believed to be a senior figure in Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, a militant Pakistani organisation linked to al-Qaeda.
The government advertisement offered a reward of 10 million rupees (€130,000) for information on his whereabouts. Despite being only in his 20s, Rehman had helped train thousands at al-Qaeda camps in the late 1990s, Pakistani officials claimed.
Earlier this year, they described him as a senior al- Qaeda operative and said he was planning an attack on the US. Now his name has cropped up again in relation to the alleged attempt to blow up transatlantic airliners.
But like much of the information emanating from Pakistan, Britain and the US since news broke of the foiled plot last week, there are conflicting reports over where exactly Rehman fits in the puzzle.
Some have quoted intelligence and government sources saying Rehman's name was mentioned during interrogation by one of 17 detainees held in Pakistan, leading to suspicions that he may be a key figure in masterminding the plot.
According to these reports, Rehman is one of two or three suspects still at large in the country. Other reports have claimed he had met with two of those arrested in Britain last week.
Still others have quoted Pakistani officials ruling out any link with Rehman.
Likewise, information about the arrest of Rashid Rauf, one of two British nationals captured in Pakistan, has appeared to contradict reports variously claiming he was found in Karachi, Lahore, the Afghan border area and Bhawalpur in the east of the country.
Pakistani officials have alleged that Rauf is linked to al-Qaeda, but declined to provide details of his supposed connections.
Yesterday, interior minister Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao told reporters that Rauf had appeared before a magistrate at the weekend. Sherpao did not disclose what Rauf had been charged with, but said a hearing would be set at a later date.
What is clear is the Pakistani government's wish to have its role in uncovering the alleged plot acknowledged.
Smarting from accusations that not enough has been done to stem extremism and militancy in the country, authorities here have sought to put a positive spin on a story that has yet again put Pakistan at the centre of a major terrorist conspiracy.
The arrests of Rauf and his alleged accomplices within Pakistan's borders present a dilemma for Pakistan's president Pervez Musharraf, under pressure to demonstrate his credentials as the US government's major ally in the region. While the arrests show his security services, often criticised for their murky links with militant groups, are cracking down on terrorism, they also prove that the country's cities and tribal badlands continue to harbour militants of many hues.
The six senior al-Qaeda figures apprehended so far, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the September 11th attacks, his accomplice Ramzi bin al-Shibh, and Abu Zubayda, al-Qaeda's former operations director, were all captured in Pakistan.
Several of those responsible for last year's London transport bombings travelled to Pakistan before carrying out the attacks, triggering suspicions they had forged links with militants there.
If a Pakistan-based al-Qaeda link to this alleged aircraft plot is found, it will prove embarrassing for President Musharraf, who has repeatedly protested Pakistan's innocence when it comes to terrorist attacks elsewhere.
Following the London bombings, Mr Musharraf declared that his security forces had "completely shattered al-Qaeda's vertical and horizontal links and smashed its communication and propaganda setup.
"Therefore, it is absolutely baseless to say that al-Qaeda has its headquarters in Pakistan, and that terror attacks in other parts of the world in any way originate from our country."
What unravels in the next weeks should determine the truth of such pronouncements.