Al-Qaeda based in Pakistan: White House

A top Obama aide on Sunday said the Al-Qaeda is based in Pakistan and that the US would "not rush" in finalising the new strategy on Afghanistan and Pakistan.

A top Obama aide on Sunday said the Al-Qaeda is based in Pakistan and that the US would "not rush" in finalising the new strategy on Afghanistan and Pakistan.

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"This is where Al-Qaeda is based. Not just in Afghanistan, it's clear that they're based in Pakistan," Rahm Emanuel, the White House Chief of Staff, told the CNN in an interview.

"What is the relationship between the Taliban? Are there different grades of a Taliban? That is what the analysis is going on in the situation room, and I think the comfort for the American people is the president will not be rushed to making a decision without asking firm questions and challenging the assumptions behind those questions," Emanuel said.

Five such meetings - each spreading over three hours - have been held so far and more are scheduled for the next two weeks, he said.

Emanuel said the administration would not rush through its decision on Afghanistan and Pakistan and would take its own time to take a call on it.