Turkish authorities arrested a man who allegedly plotted to pose as an Arab news network journalist to kill U.S. President Obama, a Saudi newspaper said Monday.

The man, said to be of Syrian descent, was arrested Friday and allegedly confessed he intended to stab Obama with a knife during the president’s visit to Turkey, the Saudi daily Al Watan reported. The man, who was carrying a press card identifying him as an employee of al-Jazeera, allegedly said he had three accomplices.

The Jerusalem Post, which reported about the al Watan article, said Turkish authorities didn’t know whether the identification card was a fake.

Yussef al-Sharif, al-Jazeera’s Ankara bureau chief, told the Saudi newspaper the ID card was “most certainly” forged. He said the alleged assassination plot came as a surprise to the Qatari network’s staff, who said they didn’t know the suspect.

The Italian news agency Adnkronos International, which also quoted the Saudi newspaper, said the Syrian man was arrested in Istanbul. It said he had been permanently living in Istanbul for a number of years.

Obama arrived in Ankara Sunday for meetings with Turkish President Abdullah Gul, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other officials.

Arrest made in alleged Obama plot