Insisting that some elements in the Pakistani government know the whereabouts of Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, US has said that the information should be shared with it. Washington also warned that a terrorist attack on US soil would devastate bilateral ties with Pakistan.
“I think what the Secretary (of State) was saying was that it’s our belief that somewhere within the (Pakistani) government there is this kind of knowledge, and we would hope that if that knowledge is available we can find out and take appropriate action,” State Department spokesman PJ Crowley told reporters at his daily news conference.
Crowley said Secretary of State Hilary Clinton in an interview during her trip to Pakistan did not suggest that the highest level authorities in Pakistan have specific knowledge of where Ladin is.
“I think the CIA director recently said on a major television programme it is — he’s not sure precisely today where bin Laden is,” he said.
“I think we believe that he remains in the tribal areas between Afghanistan and Pakistan,” Crowley said in response to a question.
Asking Islamabad to take “additional steps” to combat terrorism, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has warned that any terror attack on the US if traced back to Pakistan would have a “devastating impact” on bilateral ties.
{{/usCountry}}Asking Islamabad to take “additional steps” to combat terrorism, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has warned that any terror attack on the US if traced back to Pakistan would have a “devastating impact” on bilateral ties.
{{/usCountry}}Contending that terror groups if unchecked can be like having “a poisonous snake in your backyard,” Clinton suggested she was “all the time” worried about a terrorist attack against the US emanating from Pakistan.
“There are still additional steps that we are asking and expecting the Pakistanis to take. But there’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that should an attack on the United States be traced to Pakistan, it would be a very devastating impact on our relationship,” Clinton told the BBC in an interviews.
In further evidence of the US’s preoccupation with the terrorist threat from Pakistan, the Washington Post reported that John Bennett, a CIA veteran who served as station chief in Pakistan until last year and who has had numerous other overseas postings, has been appointed head of the agency’s National Clandestine Servicey.
As station chief in Pakistan, one of the agency’s most sensitive positions, Bennett was deeply involved in the drone campaign that has killed hundreds of Al Qaeda and Taliban operatives, including at least 20 senior figures.