TRISH00L TRISH00L
Was Raymond Davis working on this operation? Did ISI suspect he was onto something big and hence they apprehended him despite US pressure?

akshatkaushal akshat kaushal
@NickKristof hints at a possible link between Raymond Davis and the killing of Osama today http://goo.gl/B0OfH

Tauseef31 Mohammad Tauseef
@nabeelbutt87 Yeah. Maybe the ISI didn’t want them to know. Thanks to Raymond Davis and his likes that he z pinned. #OBL #Pakistan

KO KO
The ISI must be too busy sulking… “@Saba_Imtiaz: Compare this silence from Pk to the barrage of leaks over Raymond Davis. #ghairatwins”

amishra77 Akhilesh Mishra
@marvisirmed No, but I am telling you that Raymond Davis was tracking OBL before he was busted by ISI. That is why he was busted.

_AEK_ A.E.K
Here comes the pass from Raymond Davis, and Barack Obama scores..It’s a goal!!

@faisalqureshi:
Raymond Davis -> Standoff b/w C.I.A. & I.S.I -> Imran Khan dharna -> OBL found. Coincidence?

kushanmitra Kushan Mitra
apparently the Pakistanis had no clue about the raid until after it occured. this intelligence is what Raymond Davis and his ilk were after.

Melhathnofury Mel Mel
I guess Raymond Davis’ intel in February was closer than he thought…tonight proved that they were on the right track. #osama

Hiding bin Laden: Finger of suspicion at ISI

Chidanand Rajghatta, TNN |
May 2, 2011, 12.05pm IST

WASHINGTON: Just hours after American Navy Seals shot dead Osama bin Laden in a compound in Pakistan on Sunday, US President Barack Obama shot down the Pakistani security establishment’s attempt to claim joint credit for the operation.

In a ten-minute television address, Obama left no doubt that US personnel alone were involved in the action that brought bin Laden to justice. ”Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan,” Obama said, adding, ”A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability.”

While Obama said ”It’s important to note that our counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan helped lead us to bin Laden and the compound where he was hiding,” he made no mention of any Pakistani military role in the operation. US officials in background briefing made it clear that no country, much less Pakistan, was informed of the operation.

In fact, there was not even a word of thanks for Pakistan. Instead, Obama said: ”Tonight, I called President Zardari, and my team has also spoken with their Pakistani counterparts. They agree that this is a good and historic day for both of our nations. And going forward, it is essential that Pakistan continue to join us in the fight against al-Qaida and its affiliates.”

The finger of suspicion is now pointing squarely at the Pakistani military and intelligence for sheltering and protecting Osama bin Laden before US forces hunted him down and put a bullet in his head in the wee hours of Sunday. The coordinates of the action and sequence of events indicate that the al-Qaida fugitive may have been killed in an ISI safehouse.

US analysts uniformly suggested that the Pakistani security establishment’s claim of a role in the operation is clearly aimed at ducking charges of its military’s possible role in hiding bin Laden. ”This is hugely embarrassing for Pakistan,” was a common refrain on US TV channels throughout the night.

In fact, top US officials have openly suggested for months that the Pakistani military establishment was hiding bin Laden. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton came closest to publicly exposing Pakistan’s role last May when she accused some government officials there of harboring Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar.

”I am not saying they are at the highest level…but I believe somewhere in this government are people who know where Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida and where Mullah Omar and the leadership of the Taliban are,” Clinton said on May 10 last year, adding, ”We expect more cooperation (from Pakistan) to help us bring to justice capture or kill those who brought us 9/11.”

Taken together with President Obama’s pointed reference to President Zardari and leaving out any mention of Pakistani forces’ involvement, it would seem that Washington believes that Pakistan’s military intelligence establishment, including the ISI, was sheltering bin Laden. The ISI was accused as recently as last week by the top US military official Admiral Mike Mullen of having terrorist links, and named as a terrorist support entity by US officials, according to the Guantanamo cables.

Lending credence to the charges is the fact that US forces homed in on bin Laden in Abbottabad, which is a cantonment just 50 kms from Islamabad, where the Pakistani military has a strong presence. The place where bin Laden was killed is only kilometers from the Kakul military academy, where many Pakistani military elites, including some of its ISI cadres, graduate from.

While US officials are tightlipped about precise details, analysts are trying to figure out whether the compound that sheltered bin Laden was an ISI safehouse. There is also speculation as to whether Hillary Clinton was referring to this when she made her pointed remarks last May.

US officials have said for years that they believed bin Laden escaped to Pakistan after the American bombing campaign in Afghanistan. But Pakistani officials, including its former military ruler Pervez Musharraf, insisted that he was in Afghanistan, even as Afghan officials would angrily refute it and say he is in Pakistan. In the end, the Americans and Afghans were right on the money.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Hiding-bin-Laden-Finger-of-suspicion-at-ISI/articleshow/8141352.cms

The location of bin Laden’s final laird tells the tale.

So he has: a quilt of messages in reaction to the 9/11 attacks, hung at Manhattan’s Washington Square Park after the attacks. Click on the image for larger view. (© Pierre Tristam/FlaglerLive)
It would be one of the supreme ironies of this story if that Abbottabad bunker didn’t reveal the cynical hypocrisy at the core of bin Laden’s character. He wasn’t living in a cave. He wasn’t living in the Spartan severity of his very brief Afghan years, after he left the comforts of Sudan—after the Sudan kicked him out in 1996—and before the American invasion of Afghanistan drove him out five years later. This man, who made a trip to the United States in 1978 so his son could get medical treatment, was living in a fortified compound in the comforts of a city known for its country club, its Aspen-like air, its gigantic golf club and its appeals to tourists on their way to the splendors of Kashmir. He was living in a town named for James Abbott, memorializing the days of the British raj. The town was hard-hit by the 2005 earthquake in Kashmir, which killed 75,000 people, and therefore a recipient of more emergency American aid on top of the $1.2 billion to $1.5 billion a year Pakistan is receiving from U.S. taxpayers. It’s not a stretch to say that bin Laden, who spent his fortunes long ago, was partly living on American dole.
That’s his duplicity.
Then there’s Pakistan’s, that alleged ally in the war on bin Laden and Islamism. That flaunting compound where bin Laden was living, 35 miles north of the capital, was built in 2005, after the earthquake. It’s eight times higher than the residences around it. It’s surrounded by a wall of up to 15 feet high topped with barbed wire. It’s in a city filled with retired military and intelligence officers. Pakistan’s ISI, the country’s Inter-Services Intelligence, has been playing a double game with the United States since 1979. It created the Taliban in the 1990s. It protected bin Laden in Pakistan until 2001, and very likely enabled his escape from Tora Bora in December 2001. It’s impossible that the ISI didn’t know who was living in that compound in Abbottabad. It’s virtually impossible that the ISI or other elements of the Pakistani military weren’t not only protecting bin Laden, but abetting him.
Pakistan’s duplicity isn’t over. Its long-term interests in Afghanistan aren’t to facilitate American interests, but to further its own against India’s, as it did in the 1990s, when it formed the Taliban as a hedge against India there and in Kashmir, and as a replacement for American withdrawal from the scene after the defeat of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan in 1989. That’s Pakistan’s battles. It’s no longer those of the United States. Should Pakistan choose to harbor other terrorists with presumptions of attacking the United States, there’s no begrudging a special ops team to do to them what they did to bin Laden. A few of those terrorists should be quaking in their galabias right about now.
But as brilliant as the operation against bin Laden was on Sunday, it discredits for good the carpet-bombing approach of the previous years, which largely continues. Barack Obama wisely stopped referring to “the war on terror.” That’s only one out of three overdue corrections. Celebrations over Iraq and Afghanistan, to say nothing of celebrations for justice reclaimed over broader swaths of the Middle East, still await.

http://flaglerlive.com/21515/beyond-bin-laden

The man, the mujahid, the murderer …

Nadeem F. Paracha

Born into a wealthy family in Saudi Arabia, Osama Bin Laden is said to always have been conservative, but not a fanatic. Little is known about his past which was most probably unremarkable with him being one of the many children of a multi-married Saudi construction tycoon. In fact he was the seventeenth child of a man who fathered up to 52 children.

Interestingly, although Osama’s father became extremely rich thanks to his contacts with Saudi Arabia’s royal family, he remained a strict adherent of his country’s puritanical Sunni Wahabi Muslim faith, whereas Osama’s mother, a Syrian woman, did not prefer wearing the veil and was said to be more educated than her billionaire husband.

Osama’s first marriage was to a 14-year-old Saudi girl (he was 17 at the time), and in 1974 he enrolled in the economics and management faculty of Jeddah’s King Abdul Aziz University.

The university, at the time, was bustling with young radical militants most of whom had begun to arrive from Arab countries such as Egypt, Syria, Jordan and Morocco in the late 1960s where their comrades had been persecuted by those countries’ secular Arab nationalist governments.

Saudi Arabia’s monarchy had been alarmed by the rise of secular nationalist regimes in various Arab countries, most of whom had also tilted towards the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

That is why the Saudi regime began to openly receive young militants who were opponents of these nationalist governments, many of whom became students and ideologues at the King Abdul Aziz University. These young ideologues were almost entirely unopposed here, quite unlike the situation they had faced at university campuses in Egypt and Syria where student outfits of various Marxist and Arab nationalist parties were also strong.

Many of these young militants had also escaped to study in Pakistan. Although they found sympathy from Jamat-i-Islami’s student wing, Islami Jamiat Talaba (IJT) in the late 1960s and early 1970s, they were also confronted by a strong presence of various left-wing and liberal student groups who supported Arab nationalist regimes.

In those days, universities in Karachi and Lahore had large numbers of Palestinian students, many of whom, with the support of Z.A. Bhutto’s government and leftist student groups, set up a student wing of Yasser Arafat’s Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) whom the militants had opposed.

At King Abdul Aziz University, Osama discovered the political dimension of puritanical Islamic discourse (later labelled as ‘Islamism’), where an exhibition of piety is coupled with political and militant action to help create a ‘true Islamic state and society’ ruled by a revived Islamic caliphate.

When a group of Saudi Wahabi radicals took over the holy mosque in Mecca in 1979 and were eventually cleared out through a bloody gun battle between Saudi forces (trained and maneuvered by French military experts) and the rather delusional militants (who had with them a man who claimed to be Islam’s awaited avenger, Mehdi), Osama sympathised with the militants.

Then the same year, Soviet troops began settling in Afghanistan to protect and aid the country’s new revolutionary Marxist regime.

Propelled by such events and now armed with a new-found understanding of political Islam, Osama decided to join a number of Arab fighters who began arriving in Pakistan to take part in the CIA-ISI-Saudi backed ‘jihad’ against the Soviet-backed ‘infidel’ regime in Kabul.

But writing in The Guardian, Jason Burke and Lawrence Joffe, are right to suggest that Osama did not play such a huge role in the so-called ‘jihad.’

They correctly report that Osama’s military contribution was negligible. ‘The “foreign legion” (of which Osama was a part of) never numbered more than a few thousand, of whom most never saw combat but ran charities caring for refugees or wounded Afghan fighters. It was to the seven Afghan mujahideen groups, and only to them, that the
Pakistanis disbursed American and Saudi aid. Likewise, it was only the Afghans who received training. Bin Laden was not, despite later claims, created by the CIA, who had no contact with such people.’

Exploits of Arab fighters like Osama in the anti-Soviet insurgency were mostly the creation of al Qaeda propaganda in the 1990s and 2000s. I remember how in 1993, a pamphlet distributed by Pakistan’s Jamat-e-Islami in which it claimed how Soviet tanks simply exploded in front of some Arab fighters whenever they chanted Allah’s name!

Though Osama did take part in some light episodes of fighting, his central role in the conflict was to raise money for Afghan mujahideen outfits and later, use his financial clout to mediate between warring mujahideen factions after the Soviets exited from Afghanistan.

Al Qaeda is said have been formed in 1989 by Osama and radical Egyptian surgeon, Ayman al-Zawahiri. After failing to take over Jalalabad after the Soviet withdrawal, Osama and Zawahiri were still convinced that it were Arab fighters who helped the Afghans defeat the Soviets.

They were not bothered by the fact that, to begin with, it was Soviet Union’s collapsing economy, coupled by billions of dollars worth of aid that came from the US and Saudi Arabia and the determination of Afghan mujahideen that actually did the trick.

Al Qaeda was set up to incite (through violence) Islamic uprisings in various Muslim countries. It decided to group together various militant cells that had been active against the Soviets, and through militancy, violence and eventual revolution, impose an international Islamic caliphate.

From 1994 until the tragic 9/11 events, al Qaeda began conducting terrorist attacks against various Arab regimes. In 1996 when the Pakistani government and intelligence agencies helped impose a deadly radical regime in Kabul by a group of Afghan Islamic puritans who had been raised in isolated madrassas in Pakistan, Osama cut a deal with them.

He bankrolled their regime and in exchange the Taliban allowed him to set up numerous training camps in Afghanistan.

In 1998, the al Qaeda decided to intensify its operations by forming “The World Islamic Front for Jihad against Jews and Crusaders” that included militant outfits from Bangladesh, Egypt and Pakistan.

Soon, the al Qaeda were murdering Muslim civilians as well, frustrated by their fellow Muslims’ failure to rise up against their regimes. Then came 9/11, planned and executed by al Qaeda cells. American action against the Taliban regime toppled the fanatical set-up and saw bin Laden and his fighters escape to Pakistan.

As the Taliban (both in Pakistan and Afghanistan) began their own bloody reign of terror and bloodshed against civilians, and government and security personnel, the al Qaeda became merely a symbol as its cells became largely independent (but deadlier and even more blood thirsty).

Osama was also said to have fallen sick.

It is believed that for almost four years the Americans knew about Osama’s presence in Pakistan, but were not sure where he was hiding. Constant denials by Pakistan, busy playing its own little game of kill some, spare some against the Taliban, did not help either.

Then, a series of extraordinary events took place in the last one month or so. A CIA operative, Raymond Davis, was arrested in Lahore after he shot dead two (armed) Pakistani civilians. It is believed that CIA operatives like Davis are hired to track down those militants that the Pakistani military-establishment is alleged to protect for ‘strategic’ purposes.

Nevertheless, after Davis’ release, came a surge in anti-American rhetoric on the media (said to be prompted by the ISI to pressurize the CIA).

To further achieve this, came Imran Khan’s dharna (again, very much prompted) against American drone strikes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Something was afoot.

It was obvious some sections of the local intelligence agencies were getting desperate to stop the US from attacking ‘good militants’ (through drones), or those whom Pakistan can use in Afghanistan once the Americans leave that area.

As respected columnist Ayesha Siddiqa suggested, there are three opposing factions in the ISI/army. One is pro-US, one is pro-China and one is pro-Taliban.

Osama’s discovery and death in Pakistan at the hands of US marines, possibly aided by the Pakistani intelligence agencies, can be taken as a major demoralising factor for the activities of the so-called pro-Taliban sections of the military.

A good omen, indeed.

http://www.dawn.com/2011/05/02/the-man-the-mujahid-the-murderer.html

Dr Shahid Masood (i.e. ISI’s) reaction as expected:

Although the killing of Osama Bin Laden in an American operation deep inside Pakistan has provided the United States with an excellent political victory, it will have no great effect on Al-Qaeda’s operational capability, popular Pakistani broadcast journalist Dr. Shahid Masood said Monday.

“Bin Laden was their target No. 1. It was the hunt for Bin Laden that brought the Americans to Kabul and Kandahar. Now that they have got him, US President Barack Obama has a perfect reason to make an exit from Afghanistan,” he told Arab News in an interview by phone from Pakistan. “It is Pakistan that now faces the real dilemma.”

According to him, Bin Laden’s death will not impact adversely on Al-Qaeda. “Bin Laden was inactive for a fairly long time, and the terror group’s command was in reality in the hands of his No. 2 Ayman Al-Zawahiri,” he said.

Masood said Bin Laden’s killing would result in a huge backlash worldwide. “The lower rung or the second tier or the third tier of whatever is left of Al-Qaeda will be more agitated than ever,” he said. “My sources in Pakistan tell me that there will be a violent reaction from organizations that may not necessarily be linked with Al-Qaeda but which do share the terror group’s ideology. It is a fact that there are many smaller groups that take their inspiration from Al-Qaeda, and there is every possibility of more Al-Qaeda-like groups emerging on the scene. These are the groups that may react violently to avenge Bin Laden’s death,” he said.

He said it was still too early to speculate on what kind of cooperation if any took place between the Americans and Pakistanis.

“In his speech from the White House, US President Barack Obama made it clear that it was not a drone attack. He said it was a purely American operation in which American troops actually landed and conducted an operation on the Pakistani soil. This will raise lot many questions about the violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty,” said Masood. “Bin Laden’s discovery in Pakistan is not good news for us.”

He repeatedly pointed out that the place where the killing took place is far away from the border with Afghanistan. “We are talking about Abbottabad — a beautiful, green hill city nestled among the mountains. It is located in Pakistan’s Northwest Frontier Province which has now been renamed as Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. Our military has one of its most prestigious and finest military institutions called The Kakul Military Academy in this area. In fact, Kakul is a mere half-an-hour away from where the Bin Laden compounded was situated. This is not a tribal area. It is an urban center, and most of the prestigious schools meant for children of Pakistan’s elite are located in Abbottabad. For Osama Bin Laden to be found in this area will be hugely embarrassing for Pakistan,” he said. “Remember Pakistani Army chief Gen. Pervez Kayani delivered a lecture at this very academy two days ago.”

Masood said there was no real disagreement between the Pakistani military and US military on the issue of Bin Laden. “Both were on the same page vis-à-vis Bin Laden; both saw him as an irritant; the real conflict between the two was on the role of Taleban,” he said. “I see no great fissures in ties between the two sides.”

On the strain between Pakistan and India, he said Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda were never a factor. “India has complained about organizations such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Muhammad which were in existence long before Al-Qaeda emerged. Therefore, despite all the bluster from New Delhi, my understanding is that there will be no adverse impact on Pakistan-India ties.”

However, Masood said, there will be a series of embarrassments for Pakistan when answers emerge to key questions such as: What role did Pakistani security agencies play in the operation? Who provided the intelligence — and to whom? If Pakistan had the intelligence why did it not carry out the operation itself? Why did it allow the Americans to conduct the operation? Or was Pakistan informed after the American troops had already landed in Abbottabad?

“It is pertinent to note that Obama praised Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari but not the Pakistani security forces or the Pakistani military,” he pointed out. “Since we have not heard from the military and our intelligence agency, the ISI, we will have to wait for answers to all the key questions, and that will determine the people’s reaction,” he said.

In past, Masood pointed out, it was always mentioned that Pakistani forces were involved in all anti-Al-Qaeda operations. “During the days of Pervez Musharraf when high-profile Al-Qaeda members were arrested such as Khalid Sheikh Muhammad and Abu Zubeida, it used to be mentioned that actionable intelligence was provided by the Americans and that the actual operations were conducted by the Pakistanis themselves. Here we have American troops conducting the operation all by themselves and actually taking away the body of Bin Laden. This will have far-reaching implications, if not consequences,” he said.

The well-known journalist, who rode a crest of popularity in the post-9/11 Muslim world, said Bin Laden’s death will not change anything on the ground in Afghanistan. “The fight in that country is being led by young Afghans. Al-Qaeda may have been involved in a couple of attacks, but the actual fight there is being led by the Taleban. Their leadership is intact. Mullah Omar is alive, and so is key fighter Sirajuddin Haqqani. For the young Taleban, Osama was like an elder figure, a charismatic figure. In his death, they will fight with greater vigor and with greater vengeance.”

Masood admitted that Pakistan will be under immense pressure. “The Americans will now insist that Mullah Omar is also in Pakistan, Al-Zawahiri is also in Pakistan. These pressures are to be expected. However much we say we don’t have them that will not be listened to. Pakistan’s military and civilian craftsmanship will be tested to the fullest in the coming days.”

Another important factor in the kind of reaction that might follow will depend on how the Americans treat Bin Laden’s body. “So far they have said they are according it the respect that a dead man deserves,” said Masood. “They have also promised to bury him in accordance with his faith. However, a lot will depend on what kind of videos of this operation emerge. We have seen how the Americans dealt with Saddam Hussein after he was caught and how Saddam Hussein was mistreated while being hanged. Those videos came in very handy as recruitment tools for militant groups in the Arab and Muslim world.”

By SIRAJ WAHAB | ARAB NEWS
Published: May 2, 2011 15:10 Updated: May 2, 2011 17:12

http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article380038.ece

Al-Qaeda leader’s death doesn’t change Afghanistan: Masood

Compound in Pakistan was once a safe house
House was not owned by the government and had been rented by Afghan nationals, intelligence official says
By Ashfaq Ahmed, Chief ReporterPublished: 00:00 May 3, 2011
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Image Credit: AP

Soldiers of Pakistan Army seen near the house in Abbottabad on Tuesday where Osama Bin Laden was believed to have been residing. The physical security measures of the compound are extraordinary. It has 12-to-18-foot outer walls, topped with barbed wire fencing.

The compound in Abbottabad where Osama Bin Laden was killed was once used as a safe house by Pakistan’s premier intelligence agency ISI, Gulf News has learnt.
“This area had been used as ISI’s safe house, but it was not under their use any more because they keep on changing their locations,” a senior intelligence official confided to Gulf News. However, he did not reveal when and for how long it was used by the ISI operatives. Another official cautiously said “it may not be the same house but the same compound or area used by the ISI”.
The official also confirmed that the house was rented out by Afghan nationals and is not owned by the government. The house is located just 800 metres away from the Pakistan Military Academy and some former senior military officials live nearby.
Abbottabad is a garrison town located just 50 kilometres north of Islamabad and it is a popular summer resort, originally built by the British during colonial rule. The city houses a number of upscale educational institutions and religious schools as well.
Secluded affluence
According to the briefing by senior US officials on the killing of Bin Laden, the area is relatively affluent, with lots of retired military staff. It is also insulated from the natural disasters and terrorist attacks that have afflicted other parts of Pakistan — an extraordinarily unique compound. The compound sits on a large plot of land in an area that was relatively secluded when it was built. It is roughly eight times larger than nearby homes.
The physical security measures of the compound are extraordinary.
It has 12-to-18-foot outer walls, topped with barbed wires. Internal walls sectioned off different portions of the compound to provide extra privacy.
Access to the compound is restricted by two security gates and the residents of the compound burnt their trash, unlike their neighbours, who put the trash out for collection.
The property is valued at approximately $1 million (Dh3.67 million), but has no telephone or Internet connection.

http://gulfnews.com/news/world/other-world/compound-in-pakistan-was-once-a-safe-house-1.802539

Robert Fisk: Was he betrayed? Of course. Pakistan knew Bin Laden’s hiding place all along

Robert Fisk: Pakistan knew Bin Laden’s hiding place all along

May 3, 2011

Obama, Biden, Clinton in the Control Room

From Robert Fisk , Independent

A middle-aged nonentity, a political failure outstripped by history – by the millions of Arabs demanding freedom and democracy in the Middle East – died in Pakistan yesterday. And then the world went mad.

Fresh from providing us with a copy of his birth certificate, the American President turned up in the middle of the night to provide us with a live-time death certificate for Osama bin Laden, killed in a town named after a major in the army of the old British Empire. A single shot to the head, we were told. But the body’s secret flight to Afghanistan, an equally secret burial at sea? The weird and creepy disposal of the body – no shrines, please – was almost as creepy as the man and his vicious organisation.

The Americans were drunk with joy. David Cameron thought it “a massive step forward”. India described it as a “victorious milestone”. “A resounding triumph,” Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu boasted. But after 3,000 American dead on 9/11, countless more in the Middle East, up to half a million Muslims dead in Iraq and Afghanistan and 10 years trying to find Bin Laden, pray let us have no more “resounding triumphs”. Revenge attacks? Perhaps they will come, by the little groupuscules in the West, who have no direct contact with al-Qa’ida. Be sure, someone is already dreaming up a “Brigade of the Martyr Osama bin Laden”. Maybe in Afghanistan, among the Taliban.

But the mass revolutions in the Arab world over the past four months mean that al-Qa’ida was already politically dead. Bin Laden told the world – indeed, he told me personally – that he wanted to destroy the pro-Western regimes in the Arab world, the dictatorships of the Mubaraks and the Ben Alis. He wanted to create a new Islamic Caliphate. But these past few months, millions of Arab Muslims rose up and were prepared for their own martyrdom – not for Islam but for freedom and liberty and democracy. Bin Laden didn’t get rid of the tyrants. The people did. And they didn’t want a caliph.

I met the man three times and have only one question left unasked: what did he think as he watched those revolutions unfold this year – under the flags of nations rather than Islam, Christians and Muslims together, the kind of people his own al-Qa’ida men were happy to butcher?

In his own eyes, his achievement was the creation of al-Qa’ida, the institution which had no card-carrying membership. You just woke up in the morning, wanted to be in al-Qa’ida – and you were. He was the founder. But he was never a hands-on warrior. There was no computer in his cave, no phone calls to set bombs off. While the Arab dictators ruled uncontested with our support, they largely avoided condemning American policy; only Bin Laden said these things. Arabs never wanted to fly planes into tall buildings, but they did admire a man who said what they wanted to say. But now, increasingly, they can say these things. They don’t need Bin Laden. He had become a nonentity.

But talking of caves, Bin Laden’s demise does bring Pakistan into grim focus. For months, President Ali Zardari has been telling us that Bin Laden was living in a cave in Afghanistan. Now it turns out he was living in a mansion in Pakistan. Betrayed? Of course he was. By the Pakistan military or the Pakistan Inter-Services Intelligence? Quite possibly both. Pakistan knew where he was.

Not only was Abbottabad the home of the country’s military college – the town was founded by Major James Abbott of the British Army in 1853 – but it is headquarters of Pakistan’s Northern Army Corps’ 2nd Division. Scarcely a year ago, I sought an interview with another “most wanted man” – the leader of the group believed responsible for the Mumbai massacres. I found him in the Pakistani city of Lahore – guarded by uniformed Pakistani policemen holding machine guns.

Of course, there is one more obvious question unanswered: couldn’t they have captured Bin Laden? Didn’t the CIA or the Navy Seals or the US Special Forces or whatever American outfit killed him have the means to throw a net over the tiger? “Justice,” Barack Obama called his death. In the old days, of course, “justice” meant due process, a court, a hearing, a defence, a trial. Like the sons of Saddam, Bin Laden was gunned down. Sure, he never wanted to be taken alive – and there were buckets of blood in the room in which he died.

But a court would have worried more people than Bin Laden. After all, he might have talked about his contacts with the CIA during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, or about his cosy meetings in Islamabad with Prince Turki, Saudi Arabia’s head of intelligence. Just as Saddam – who was tried for the murder of a mere 153 people rather than thousands of gassed Kurds – was hanged before he had the chance to tell us about the gas components that came from America, his friendship with Donald Rumsfeld, the US military assistance he received when he invaded Iran in 1980.

Oddly, he was not the “most wanted man” for the international crimes against humanity of 11 September 2001. He gained his Wild West status by al-Qa’ida’s earlier attacks on the US embassies in Africa and the attack on the US barracks in Dhahran. He was always waiting for Cruise missiles – so was I when I met him. He had waited for death before, in the caves of Tora Bora in 2001 when his bodyguards refused to let him stand and fight and forced him to walk over the mountains to Pakistan. Some of his time he would spend in Karachi – he was obsessed with Karachi; he even, weirdly, gave me photographs of pro-Bin Laden graffiti on the walls of the former Pakistani capital and praised the city’s imams.

His relations with other Muslims were mysterious; when I met him in Afghanistan, he initially feared the Taliban, refusing to let me travel to Jalalabad at night from his training camp – he handed me over to his al-Qa’ida lieutenants to protect me on the journey next day. His followers hated all Shia Muslims as heretics and all dictators as infidels – though he was prepared to cooperate with Iraq’s ex-Baathists against the country’s American occupiers, and said so in an audiotape which the CIA typically ignored. He never praised Hamas and was scarcely worthy of their “holy warrior” definition yesterday which played – as usual – straight into Israel’s hands.

In the years after 2001, I maintained a faint indirect communication with Bin Laden, once meeting one of his trusted al-Qa’ida associates at a secret location in Pakistan. I wrote out a list of 12 questions, the first of which was obvious: what kind of victory could he claim when his actions resulted in the US occupation of two Muslim countries? There was no reply for weeks. Then one weekend, waiting to give a lecture in Saint Louis in the US, I was told that Al Jazeera had produced a new audiotape from Bin Laden. And one by one – without mentioning me – he answered my 12 questions. And yes, he wanted the Americans to come to the Muslim world – so he could destroy them.

When Wall Street journalist Daniel Pearl was kidnapped, I wrote a long article in The Independent, pleading with Bin Laden to try to save his life. Pearl and his wife had looked after me when I was beaten on the Afghan border in 2001; he even gave me the contents of his contacts book. Much later, I was told that Bin Laden had read my report with sadness. But Pearl had already been murdered. Or so he said.

Yet Bin Laden’s own obsessions blighted even his family. One wife left him, two more appeared to have been killed in Sunday’s American attack. I met one of his sons, Omar, in Afghanistan with his father in 1994. He was a handsome little boy and I asked him if he was happy. He said “yes” in English. But last year, he published a book called Living Bin Laden and – recalling how his father killed his beloved dogs in a chemical warfare experiment – described him as an “evil man”. In his book, he too remembered our meeting; and concluded that he should have told me that no, he was not a happy child.

By midday yesterday, I had three phone calls from Arabs, all certain that it was Bin Laden’s double who was killed by the Americans – just as I know many Iraqis who still believe that Saddam’s sons were not killed in 2003, nor Saddam really hanged. In due course, al-Qa’ida will tell us. Of course, if we are all wrong and it was a double, we’re going to be treated to yet another videotape from the real Bin Laden – and President Barack Obama will lose the next election.

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/robert-fisk-was-he-betrayed-of-course-pakistan-knew-bin-ladens-hiding-place-all-along-2278028.html

Osama’s hiding place 100 yards from PMA Kakul: CBS News
May 2, 2011
By Farrukh Siddiqui
(CBS News/AP)

ISLAMABAD – Osama bin Laden was holed up in a sprawling house just 100 yards from a Pakistani military academy when helicopters carrying U.S. anti-terror forces swooped in the early morning hours of Monday and killed him.

Flames rose Monday from the building that was the apparent target of the raid as it was confirmed that the world’s most wanted fugitive died not in a cave, but in a town best known as a garrison for the Pakistani military. A U.S. official tells CBS News that one of bin Laden’s sons was also killed in the raid along with at least two others, but the official did not name the son or the others killed.

The operation “doesn’t bode well for our friends” the Pakistanis, one U.S. official tells CBS News national security correspondent David Martin. The official, who spoke on condition they not be named, said it would be hard for the Pakistani government to explain how such a high-profile figure could have been living in such a high-profile residence “without their knowing”.

U.S. officials tell CBS that cooperation from the Pakistanis “assisted in this lead as we pursued it,” but the U.S. shared no specific intelligence on the compound prior to the raid.

“We are very concerned that he was inside of Pakistan but this is something that we will work with Pakistan government about,” one official tells CBS.

Pakistani officials and a witness said bin Laden’s guards opened fire from the roof of the building, and one of the choppers crashed. The sound of at least two explosions rocked the small northwestern town of Abbottabad where the al Qaeda chief made his last stand. The U.S. said no Americans were harmed in the raid.

Abbottabad is home to at least one regiment of the Pakistani army, is dotted with military buildings and home to thousands of army personnel. Surrounded by hills and with mountains in the distance, it is less than half a days drive from the border region with Afghanistan, where most intelligence assessments believed bin Laden was holed up.

The news he was killed in an army town in Pakistan will raise more pointed questions of how he managed to evade capture and whether Pakistan’s military and intelligence leadership knew of his whereabouts and sheltered him. Critics have long accused elements of Pakistan’s security establishment of protecting bin Laden, though Islamabad has always denied this.

Abbotabad resident Mohammad Haroon Rasheed said the raid happened about 1:15 a.m. local time.

“I heard a thundering sound, followed by heavy firing. Then firing suddenly stopped. Then more thundering, then a big blast,” he said. “In the morning when we went out to see what happened, some helicopter wreckage was lying in an open field.”

He said the house was 100 yards away from the gate of the academy.

A Pakistani official in the town said fighters on the roof opened fire on the choppers as they came close to the building with rocket propelled grenades. Another official said four helicopters took off from the Ghazi air base in northwest Pakistan. Last summer, the U.S. army was based in Ghazi to help out in the aftermath of the floods. Women and children were taken into custody during the raid, he said. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the information.

7 Responses to Osama’s hiding place 100 yards from PMA Kakul: CBS News

Alan Marshall on May 2, 2011 at 8:27 pm
The reports say: Osama was shot in the head: Why didn’t they get him alive?

Why have they not released video of his body and face? Why he was buried in SEA in a a rush unlike the way Saddam Husein was shown off to the whole world? If Pakistani intelligence was hiding him, Americans are a bunch of idiots who have been giving billions to Pakistan including F16s!

If Al Qaeda is an ideology and consists of independent cells all over the world, what purpose does it serve to have hundreds of thousands of troops in Afghnaistan? Anyone would enlighten me on this?

If this is realy true, then one more point, a human – on the ground – intelligence operation got him, not a drone attack!

REPLY

Shezz on May 2, 2011 at 10:09 pm
Osama not killed yet, How they get him from Islamabad to the sea in a matter of hours wheras Islambad is over 700-800 miles away from the sea! They would have to have transported him IMMEDIATELY no time for DNA testing or confirmation something smells fishy no pun intended. See truth with Videos & Photos at http://itwel.com/obama-confirmed-osama-killed-updates-photos-and-videos.php

REPLY

Farah on May 2, 2011 at 11:16 pm
They say they first took the body to Bagram airbase in Afghanistan. The nearest sea is Persian Gulf or Arabia Sea… they would have had to fly over Pakistan again…..

REPLY

J-P Sartre on May 2, 2011 at 11:59 pm
The first three responses are total gibberish besides being uninformed “Tuesday morning quarterbacking”. Congratulations to all involved in this operation!

REPLY

U Hussein on May 3, 2011 at 1:19 pm
Clearly the American’s do not trust Pakistanis. This is a love hate relationship where neither side trust the other. I am no supporter of OBL but clearly Pakistan’s air space was violated while the radar (provided by US) systems must have been jammed by the on going operation. For over an hour the Generals kept sleeping. Question is why the Americans who give so much aid did not take anyone in confidence in the Pakistan govt? What kind of Generals the Kakul academy produces? What good are these expensive toys if we cannot defend Pakistan’s territorial integrity? This gives a clear indication to the Indians to come & invade to take out the nuclear facility. It can be done in an hour. All our generals want is to amass more plots of real estate & so long as the real estate prices go up the country’s airspace can be violated. We surely live in Alice in Wonderland !

REPLY

Jack on May 3, 2011 at 11:52 pm
If UBL is in fact, still alive, as some believe, why doesn’t he make an appearance? Our special forces are the best in the world and they deserve all the accolades due them. Had I been his capturer I would have placed an incendiary grenade in a particular orifice saving the need for transport to any ocean burial.

REPLY

Stoneweapon on May 4, 2011 at 3:23 am
The location for the Osama bin Laden assassination was staged in the PMA Kakul backyard for its close proximity to provide a coverup operation. This drama in Abbottabad was staged to justify US withdrawal from Afghanistan. It would have been very embarrassing for USA to leave Afghanistan without showing the world that it had completed its mission of getting Osama. A complete fabrication that reminds me of WMD in Iraq.

http://www.stateofpakistan.org/osamas-hiding-place-100-yards-from-pma-kakul-cbs-news

The house of secrets: behind the high walls of Osama’s compound
For years, neighbours wondered what went on in the mysterious ‘rich person’s house’. Now they know

By Andrew Buncombe

They thought the house belonged to a drug-dealer, or perhaps a smuggler, and local people had learned to leave it well alone. When the milkman delivered he did not even ring the bell but simply left it outside the green double gates. If anyone ever stopped and leaned against the cream coloured wall someone would emerge and tell them to clear off. Cricket-playing children who exuberantly hit their shots over the compound’s high, barbed-wire topped walls were given money to go the local shop, but they were never allowed inside to retrieve their ball.

“There was a rumour that the person living there was a smuggler from Peshawar,” said Hussain Jaffri, a resident of the Thanda Choha neighbourhood of Abbottabad, and whose house overlooked the compound occupied by Osama bin Laden. “In this area, when there is a large house you know it’s black money, perhaps from white powder.”

Amid the dusty lanes and neatly planted fields where Bin Laden’s unwitting neighbours lived and worked, a picture emerged yesterday of a close-knit community that was suspicious about the occupants of the three-storey compound and yet who, for whatever reason, chose to make no further inquiries. “When there is a rumour like this, you don’t want to go and knock on the door,” Mr Jaffri said.

Locals said the occupants of the compound, replete with a poplar and peach trees, had minimal interaction with their neighbours. They did not celebrate national or religious holidays, they did not pass the time of day with other people and they had few dealings with traders. One occupant, said to be called Nadeem, left the compound every day in a red Suzuki minivan to collect supplies. Every day he returned with a goat, presumably for slaughter. No one said they had ever caught a glimpse of the 54-year-old Saudi fugitive, said to have lived on the upper two floors.

“It was a rich person’s house. Only a rich person could afford a house like that. Only that house had the high walls,” said Tanvir Ahmed, who runs an ice-cream shop. “If a child’s ball went over the wall they would not be allowed in to get it. They would be given money instead – about 150 rupees [£1].”

Umar Daniel Alvi, a 16-year-old who played football and cricket close to the house said: “There was a rumour in the neighbourhood that it was occupied by the nephew of [late Taliban leader] Baitullah Mehsud. I went there on two occasions when we hit the ball over. I tried to get it but there was nobody there.”

The compound had been designed as if discouraging curious eyes was a top priority. In addition to the high walls, gaps in the brickwork that could have allowed a view inside were cemented shut. A full-length window opening onto the street was also filled in. Anyone seeking entry had to use an intercom. “We never saw anyone making deliveries there,” said Zahn Mohammad, who lived opposite the compound.

Yet by far the most remarkable thing about the property, that some locals had nicknamed Waziristan Haveli (mansion) because its residents were thought to be Pashtuns from Pakistan’s tribal areas, was its location. Less than half a mile away stands the Kakul military academy, a prestigious military school where two weeks ago Pakistan’s military chief, Gen Ashfaq Kayani, gave a speech claiming the armed forces had broken the back of the militancy that has so rocked the country.

Closer still – less than 100 yards from the compound’s 15ft walls that are topped with three strands of barbed wire – is the well-maintained house of Major Amir Aziz, an officer believed to be serving with the army’s medical corps. Locals said Mr Aziz had lived there for many years and that his father had occupied the property before that. Yesterday no one answered the door when The Independent knocked, though young children could be seen inside. The major’s neighbour, a woman who gave her name as Bibi Saida, said Mr Aziz was well-known in the neighbourhood. As for the people who had lived in the compound beyond, her comments echoed those of many others. “We don’t know anything,” she said. “We are so shocked.”

Many have asked how Bin Laden and his small group could have been living here, so close to the heart of the Pakistan establishment without anyone knowing. If neighbours had suspicions then why did the police never investigate, especially given the compound’s proximity to the military academy? Why does it seem the occupants never even tried to develop a plausible cover story for their presence in this neighbourhood, made up largely of ethnic Hazara people? The arrest in Abbottabad earlier this year of al-Qa’ida suspect, Umar Patek, has added further intrigue. “I would think it’s probably complicity at some level, otherwise it would be impossible,” said analyst Talat Masood, a former senior army officer. “People in Pakistan want to know who is living next [door]. Someone must have been going in and coming out. I’m puzzled and ashamed.”

Pakistan’s spy agency, the ISI, yesterday claimed it had raided the compound in 2003 when it was being constructed but had since then it had been “off the radar”. A local land registry official, Mohsin Arshad, said the property had been bought in the mid 2000s by Arshad Khan and his brother, who came from Charsadda in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. What has happened to the brothers remains unclear. They also kept themselves to themselves, locals said.

One of the rare instances of interaction between the occupants of the compound and the local people involved Nadeem, driver of the red minivan, and an 11-year-old girl called Asra Amjad. The young girl saw Nadeem collecting grass and asked him what it was for. He told her that he kept rabbits in the compound. A few days later the driver came to the family house with two rabbits for Asra and her family. The youngster had no insight into who the rabbits may have belonged to. But she and her brother were happy to have them as their pets, scampering on the roof that overlooks the compound, an unlikely reminder of their unlikely neighbours.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/the-house-of-secrets-behind-the-high-walls-of-osamas-compound-2278576.html

Pakistan faces big questions, says Cameron
By Nigel Morris, Deputy Political Editor

David Cameron stoked diplomatic tensions with Pakistan last night after he said Osama bin Laden must have had a “support network” in the country to live undetected for several years.

He said the Pakistani authorities would have to face “searching questions” over the al-Qa’ida leader’s comfortable existence in the fortified compound stormed by US troops.

The Prime Minister also raised the prospect of accelerating the withdrawal of British troops from Afghanistan if the Taliban took the opportunity to lay down their weapons and join talks on the nation’s future.

He said he did not want a “flaming great row” with a Pakistani leadership which was committed to tackling terrorism. But Mr Cameron made clear he suspected officials within the country of helping Bin Laden to hide from view.

He said in a statement to MPs: “The fact that Bin Laden was living in a large house in a populated area suggests that he must have had a support network in Pakistan. We don’t currently know the extent of that network, so it is right that we ask searching questions about it – and we will.”

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/pakistan-faces-big-questions-says-cameron-2278577.html

یکطرفہ آپریشن سے تعاون کو خطرہ:پاکستان، بتاتے تو راز افشا ہو جاتا: پنیٹا

ہم نے تو بتایا تھا
اسامہ ہلاکت ناکامی کی نشانی نہیں
مردہ اسامہ زیادہ خطرناک؟
اسامہ کی زندگی

پاکستانی وزارتِ خارجہ نے کہا ہے کہ پاکستان اپریل دو ہزار گیارہ کے وسط تک امریکہ کے ساتھ ایبٹ آباد اور اس کے مضافات میں غیر ملکیوں کی نقل و حرکت کے بارے میں خفیہ معلومات کا تبادلہ کرتا رہا ہے

وزارتِ خارجہ کی طرف سے جاری ہونے والے ایک بیان کے مطابق انہیں معلومات کی بنیاد پر امریکی خفیہ ادارہ سی آئی اے اپنی اعلیٰ ٹیکنالوجی کی مدد سے اسامہ بن لادن تک پہنچنے میں کامیاب ہوا اور اس امر کو امریکی صدر اور سیکریٹری خارجہ نے بھی تسلیم کیا ہے۔’

ایبٹ آباد میں اسامہ بن لادن کے خلاف آپریشن کی معلومات کو پاکستان سے خفیہ رکھنے کا فیصلہ اس خوف کی وجہ سے کیا گیا تھا کہ یہ راز افشا کر دیا جائے گا۔
سی آئی اے سربراہ
پاکستانی وزارتِ خارجہ نے کہا ہے کہ پاکستان اپریل دو ہزار گیارہ کے وسط تک امریکہ کے ساتھ ایبٹ آباد اور اس کے مضافات میں غیر ملکوں کی نقل و حرکت کے بارے میں خفیہ معلومات کا تبادلہ کرتا رہا ہے

پاکستان نے پیشگی اطلاع دیے بغیر امریکی آپریشن پر شدید تحفظات کا اظہار کرتے ہوئے کہا کہ مستبقل میں ایسے یکطرفہ آپریشن سے نہ صرف پاکستانی تعاون خطرے میں پڑ جائے گا بلکہ ایسا کوئی آپریشن عالمی امن کے لیے بھی خطرناک ثابت ہو سکتا ہے۔

ادھر سی آئی اے کے سربراہ لیون پنیٹا نے کہا ہے کہ ایبٹ آباد میں اسامہ بن لادن کے خلاف آپریشن کی معلومات کو پاکستان سے خفیہ رکھنے کا فیصلہ اس خوف کی وجہ سے کیا گیا تھا کہ یہ راز افشا کر دیا جائے گا۔

لیون پنیٹا نے ٹائم میگزین کو بتایا ہے کہ یہ فیصلہ کیا گیا کہ اطلاعات کا تبادلہ اس مشن کو ناکام کر سکتا ہے۔

جبکہ وائٹ ہاوس نے اب کہا ہے کہ جب اسامہ بن لادن کو گولیاں مار کر ہلاک کیا گیا تو وہ اس وقت مسلح نہیں تھے۔ وائٹ ہاوس کے ترجمان جے کارنی نے کہا کہ اسامہ نے مزاحمت کی جس پر انہیں ہلاک کر دیا گیا۔ تاہم انہوں نے یہ نہیں بتایا کہ مسلح نہ ہونے کے باوجود اسامہ نے مزاحمت کیسے کی۔

جے کارنی نے کہا کہ امریکی فوجیوں کو اس آپریشن کے دوران اسامہ کے گھر میں موجود مسلح افراد کی جانب سے سخت مزاحمت کا سامنا کرنا پڑا۔

پاکستانی وزارت خارجہ کے بیان کے مطابق ایبٹ آباد اور کے مضافاتی علاقے سن دو ہزار تین کے بعد سے خفیہ اداروں کی توجہ کا مرکز رہے ہیں اور انہیں خفیہ معلومات بنیاد پر آئی ایس آئی نے سن دو ہزار چار میں القاعدہ اہداف کے خلاف کامیاب آپریشن کیا تھا۔

مستبقل میں ایسے یکطرفہ آپریشن سے نہ صرف پاکستانی تعاون خطرے میں پڑ جائے گا بلکہ ایسا آپریشن عالمی امن کے لیے بھی خطرناک ثابت ہو سکتا ہے۔
پاکستانی وزارت خارجہ
’جہاں تک امریکہ کی طرف سے نشانہ بنائی جانے والی عمارت کا تعلق ہے، اس کے بارے میں آئی ایس آئی سی آئی اے اور دیگر دوست ملکوں کے خفیہ اداروں کے ساتھ سن دو ہزار نو تک انٹیلیجنس کا تبادلہ کرتا رہا ہے۔‘

اس سے پہلے پاکستان کے خفیہ ادارے آئی ایس آئی نے کہا تھا کہ ایبٹ آباد میں اسامہ بن لادن کی موجودگی ادارے کے لیے سخت ہزیمت کا باعث بنی ہے۔

اسلام آباد میں صحافیوں سے بات چیت کرتے ہوئے آئی ایس آئی کے حکام نے بتایا کہ جس مکان میں اسامہ بن لادن پناہ لیے ہوئے تھے انہیں اس کے بارے میں 2003 سے پتہ تھا۔

بی بی سی کے اوئن بینٹ جونز کے مطابق آئی ایس آئی کے ایک افسر نے بتایا کہ سنہ 2003 میں جب یہ مکان زیرِتعمیر تھا اس پر القاعدہ کے ایک اور رہنما ابو فراج اللبی کی تلاش میں چھاپہ مارا گیا تھا جو اس وقت کے سربراہِ حکومت جنرل مشرف پر قاتلانہ حملے کے الزام میں مطلوب تھے۔

تاہم بعد ازاں اس مکان کی نگرانی کا سلسلہ ختم کر دیا گیا اور اب پاکستانی خفیہ ادارے یہ نہیں جانتے تھے کہ وہاں اسامہ بن لادن موجود ہیں۔

امریکی ہیلی کاپٹر پہاڑی علاقوں اور ایسی فضائی حدود کا استعمال کرتے ہوئے پاکستان میں داخل ہوئے جو ریڈار پر نہیں آتے ہیں۔
پاکستان
پاکستان نے ان اطلاعات کی سختی سے تردید کی ہے کہ ایبٹ آباد میں آپریشن کے لیے امریکی ہیلی کاپٹر پاکستانی غازی ائربیس سے اڑے تھے۔ پاکستان نے کہا ہے کہ پاکستان نے ایبٹ آباد میں آپریشن سے متعلق کسی قسم کی کوئی مدد نہیں کی۔

پاکستان نے کہا ہے کہ امریکی ہیلی کاپٹر پہاڑی علاقوں اور ایسی فضائی حدود کا استعمال کرتے ہوئےپاکستان میں داخل ہوئے جو ریڈار پر نہیں آتے ہیں۔

پاکستان نے کہا پہاڑی علاقہ ہونے کی وجہ سے امریکی ہیلی کاپٹروں کا پتہ نہیں چل سکا لیکن جوں ہی اسے ایبٹ آباد میں جاری آپریشن کے بارے میں اطلاعات ملی تو پاکستان فضائیہ کے ہوائی جہاز منٹوں میں ہوا میں فضا میں بلند ہوئے جس کو وائٹ ہاؤس کے مشیر جان برینن نے بھی تسلیم کیا ہے۔

پاکستان میں اونچے دیواروں والے گھر کوئی انہونی بات نہیں ہے اور خصوصاً ایسے گھر جہاں خیبر پختونخوا اور قبائلی علاقوں کے متاثرین رہتے ہیں وہاں مقامی روایت کے مطابق دیواریں اونچی ہوتی ہیں۔
پاکستانی وزارت خارجہ
پاکستانی دفتر خارجہ نے ایبٹ آباد میں نشانہ بنائے جانے والےگھر کی دیواروں کے حوالے سے جاری بحث کے بارے میں کہا کہ پاکستان میں ایسےگھروں کا وجود کوئی انہونی بات نہیں ہے اور خصوصاً ایسے گھر جہاں خیبر پختونخوا اور قبائلی علاقوں کے متاثرین رہتے ہیں وہاں مقامی روایت کے مطابق دیواریں اونچی ہوتی ہیں۔

اسامہ بن لادن کے خاندان کے افراد کے حوالے سے بیان میں کہا گیا ہے کہ وہ محفوظ ہاتھوں میں ہیں اور ان میں سے جن کو طبی امداد کی ضرورت تھی انہیں امداد دی جا رہی ہے۔ پاکستان نے کہا کہ پاکستانی قانون کے تحت ان افراد کو ان کے آبائی ممالک کے حوالے کر دیا جائے گا۔

دفتر خارجہ نے کہا پاکستان کو پیشگی اطلاع دیے بغیر امریکہ نے جس ا نداز میں یہ آپریشن کیا ہے پاکستان کو اس پر شدید تحفظات ہیں۔

پاکستان نے کہا کہ مستبقل کے ایسے یکطرفہ آپریشن اس جنگ میں پاکستانی تعاون کو نہ صرف خطرے میں ڈال سکتا ہے بلکہ عالمی امن کے لیے بھی خطرناک ثابت ہو سکتا ہے۔

پاکستان نے کہا ہے کہ پاکستانی فوج اور خفیہ اداروں کی مدد سے القاعدہ اور دوسری دہشتگرد تنظیموں کی کمر توڑ دی گئی ہے اور امریکہ اور دوسری دوست ممالک کو القاعدہ کے خلاف جنگ میں کامیابیاں پاکستانی مدد سے ہی ملی ہیں۔

اسامہ بن لادن کی بارہ سالہ بیٹی پاکستانی حکام کی تحویل میں ہے اور اس کا کہنا ہے کہ اس نے امریکیوں کو اپنے والد کو گولی مارتے دیکھا تھا۔
حکام کا کہنا تھا کہ یہ انکشاف پاکستانی خفیہ ادارے کے لیے باعثِ شرمندگی ہے کہ اسامہ بن لادن پاکستان کے اس علاقے میں موجود تھا اور وہ اس سے لاعلم تھے۔ حکام کا کہنا تھا کہ ’ہم کارکردگی میں اچھے ہیں لیکن ہم خدا نہیں ہیں‘۔

خفیہ ادارے کے حکام نے صحافیوں کو یہ بھی بتایا ہے کہ اسامہ بن لادن کی بارہ سالہ بیٹی پاکستانی حکام کی تحویل میں ہے اور اس کا کہنا ہے کہ اس نے امریکیوں کو اپنے والد کو گولی مارتے دیکھا تھا۔

حکام کے مطابق ایبٹ آباد میں چھپے ہوئے اسامہ بن لادن کے خلاف امریکی کارروائی کے وقت اس گھر میں سترہ سے اٹھارہ لوگ موجود تھے اور اگر امریکی ہیلی کاپٹر تباہ نہ ہوتا توامریکی کمانڈوز تمام افراد کو ساتھ لے جاتے۔

آئی ایس آئی کے ایک اہلکار نے صحافیوں کی بتایا کہ امریکی صرف اسامہ بن لادن کی لاش اور ایک دوسرے شخص کو جو شاید اسامہ بن لادن کے بیٹے تھے، زخمی حالت میں اپنے ساتھ لےگئے۔

آئی ایس آئی نے اسامہ بن لادن کی بیوی سے بھی بات چیت کی ہے جنہوں نے ہوش میں آنے کے بعد بتایا کہ وہ یمنی نژاد ہیں اور وہ لوگ اس گھر میں کچھ ماہ پہلے ہی منتقل ہوئے تھے۔
کارروائی کے دوران اس کمپاؤنڈ میں متعدد بچے اور عورتیں موجود تھے جن کے ہاتھ باندھ دیے گئے تھے اور ان کے خیال میں ایک امریکی ہیلی کاپٹر کو پیش آنے والے حادثے کی وجہ سے انہیں ساتھ اس لیے نہیں لے جایا گیا۔

خیال کیا جاتا ہے کہ امریکی فوجی جاتے ہوئے جن چار لاشوں کو اس مکان میں چھوڑ گئے ان میں سے ایک اسامہ بن لادن کا بیٹا، دو بھائی اور ایک سکیورٹی گارڈ تھا۔

اس حملے میں جو افراد بچ گئے ان میں اسامہ بن لادن کی ایک بیوی، ایک بیٹی اور آٹھ سے نو بچے ہیں۔ ایک لڑکی کے علاوہ باقی بچے بظاہر اسامہ بن لادن کے نہیں ہیں۔

آئی ایس آئی نے اسامہ بن لادن کی بیوی سے بھی بات چیت کی ہے جنہوں نے ہوش میں آنے کے بعد بتایا کہ وہ یمنی نژاد ہیں اور وہ لوگ اس گھر میں کچھ ماہ پہلے ہی منتقل ہوئے تھے۔

حکام کے مطابق اسامہ بن لادن کے خلاف آپریشن میں چار ہیلی کاپٹر استعمال ہوئے جن میں سے دو نے لینڈنگ کی۔ آئی ایس آئی کے اہلکار نے ان اطلاعات کی تردید کی کہ آپریشن سے ایک گھنٹہ پہلے پاکستانی فوجیوں نے ایبٹ آباد میں اسامہ بن لادن کے پڑوسیوں کو بتیاں بجھانے کے لیے کہا تھا۔

http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/pakistan/2011/05/110503_zardari_osama_zs.shtml

Read Irfan Siddiqi’s prayer for OBL. This man represents PMLN. Shame!

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وہ جوکوئی بھی تھا…!نقش خیال…عرفان صدیقی…وہ جو کوئی بھی تھا، اب اس کا معاملہ اللہ کے ہاتھ ہے۔

پاکستانیوں کی بہت بڑی تعداد ایک سوگ کی سی کیفیت میں رہی۔ اس لئے نہیں کہ یہ سادہ و معصوم لوگ دہشت گردی سے ناتا رکھتے اور دہشت گردوں سے محبت کرتے ہیں۔ اس لئے بھی نہیں کہ اسامہ بن لادن ان کا محبوب تھا۔ اس لئے کہ ازل ازل سے انسانوں کی فطرت، خدا فراموش فرعونوں سے نفرت کرتی اور ان فرعونوں کو للکارنے والوں کو اپنا اپنا سا سمجھتی ہے۔ فرعونوں کا معتوب، جو کوئی بھی ہو، جیسا بھی ہو، انسانوں کا محبوب بن جاتا ہے۔ کیا اسامہ کی حکمت عملی اسلامی تعلیمات کے مطابق تھی؟ کیا ایک مرد دانا کی طرح وہ زمینی حقیقتوں کا شعور رکھتا تھا؟ کیا اس کے چنے ہوئے راستے نے بالعموم امت مسلمہ کے مفادات کی آبیاری کی؟ ان سوالوں پہ پہلے بھی بحث ہوتی رہی ، آئندہ بھی ہوتی رہے گی، دنیا میں ایسا کوئی شخص پیدا نہیں ہوا جس کے فکر و عمل سے اختلاف کرنے والا کوئی نہ ہو۔ اسامہ پر پہلے بھی سنگ زنی ہوتی رہی، آئندہ بھی نشتر زنی ہوتی رہے گی لیکن اس کی روح اب سود و زیاں کے دنیوی پیمانوں سے بہت دور جا چکی ہے۔ امریکہ ، نیٹو، یورپی یونین، اقوام متحدہ اور شکم پرست ہراول دستوں کی دسترس سے کوسوں آگے۔
ٹیلی فونوں اور پیغامات کا تانتا بندھا رہا کہ اسے شہید، کیوں نہیں کہا جا رہا؟
میں دل گرفتہ اہل وطن کو سمجھاتا رہا کہ معصوم و سادہ دل لوگو! ہم اسے شہید نہیں کہہ سکتے۔ اس لئے کہ شہنشاہ عالم پناہ خفا ہو جائے گا۔ اس لئے بھی کہ ہم دس سال سے، امریکی جنگ کا دست بازو ہیں اور اسامہ ہمارے مخالف لشکر میں سے تھا۔ اس لئے بھی کہ ہم اپنا پیٹ پالنے کے لئے امریکی نان نفقے کے محتاج ہیں۔ اس لئے بھی کہ امریکا دنیا کا تاجدار اور جابر ملک ہے اور ہمارے حکمرانوں کی باگیں اس کے ہاتھ میں ہیں۔ اور سب سے بڑھ کر اس لئے کہ ’دین غلامی“ میں امریکہ کو آنکھیں دکھانے اور اس سے پنجہ آزمائی کرنے والا غازی کہلا سکتا ہے نہ شہید۔
دو دن سے ٹی ۔ وی چینلوں پر ایک تماشا سا لگا ہے۔ خبریں، تصویریں، فلمیں، تبصرے، تجزیے، امکانات، خدشات۔ میں ریموٹ کے بٹن دبا دبا کر چینل بدلتا اور میڈیا کے چلن دیکھتا رہا۔ ہر پاکستانی چینل پر وہی بولی، بولی جا رہی تھی جو اسامہ کے بارے میں امریکہ، یورپ اور دنیا کے دیگر مسلم بیزار منطقوں میں بولی جاتی ہے۔ ہم اسے مسلسل امریکہ کی آنکھ سے دیکھتے رہے، اس کے بارے میں پھیلائی گئی امریکی کہانیاں دہراتے رہے اور وقفے وقفے سے امریکہ ہی کی زبان میں اس پر تبصرے کرتے رہے۔ غلامی اسی طرح دلوں اور ذہنوں کے اندر گھونسلے بناتی ہے ۔ ہمیں کچھ ضرورت نہیں کہ اس کی زندگی کے نشیب و فراز کا جائزہ لیں اربوں اور کھربوں میں کھیلنے اور سونے کا چمچہ منہ میں لے کر پیدا ہونے والا شہزادہ، انجینئرنگ میں اعلیٰ تعلیم حاصل کرنے والا ہونہار نوجوان، اپنے خاندان کی بے کراں دولت لامحدود کاروباری امکانات اور عیش و عشرت سے پُر زندگی سے دستکش ہو کر غریب الوطنی، سخت کوشی، جہدو پیکار اور سامراج دشمنی کے خار زاروں کی طرف کیوں نکل آیا؟ دنیا میں کتنے ہیں جو شہزادگی ٹھکرا کر کسی مقصد کی لگن میں ایسی راہوں پر نکل آتے ہیں جہاں اذیتوں اور مشقتوں کے سوا کچھ نہیں ہوتا اور جہاں موت سائے کی طرح ساتھ ساتھ چل رہی ہوتی ہے ۔ دو دو ٹکے کی نوکریوں اور رسوائیوں میں گندھی بے ننگ و نام حکومتوں کے لئے اپنی آن اور اپنا ایمان بیچ دینے والوں کی اس دنیا میں کتنے ہیں جو جُنوں کا ایسا سرمایہ رکھتے ہوں؟
جب وہ افغانستان کے پہاڑوں، گھاٹیوں اور میدانوں میں سوویت یونین سے لڑ رہا تھا، جہاد منظم کر رہا تھا، اس کی دولت تحریک مزاحمت کی رگوں میں لہو بن کر دوڑ رہی تھی تو وہ ”عظیم مجاہد“ اور ” بہادر جانباز“ کہلاتا تھا۔ امریکہ اس کی بلائیں لیتا تھا۔ اس کی راہوں میں سرخ قالین بچھاتا تھا، پھر زمانہ بدلا۔ روس دریائے آمو کے اس پار چلا گیا کم و بیش چوتھائی صدی بعد امریکہ اسی اسامہ کی تلاش میں افغانستان پر چڑھ دوڑا۔ اس لئے کہ اسامہ امریکی توسیع پسندی کے خلاف تھا۔ اس کا نعرہ تھا کہ امریکی افواج سعودی عرب اور دیگر اسلامی ممالک سے نکل جائیں وہ امریکا کی اسرائیل نوازی پر بھی معترض تھا۔ نائن الیون کے فوراً بعد اعلان ہوا کہ یہ اسامہ کا کیا دھرا ہے ۔ آج تک اس الزام کا کوئی ایک ٹھوس ثبوت سامنے نہیں لایا جا سکا۔ اکتوبر 2001ء میں امریکہ نے افغانستان پر یلغار کر دی۔ دنیا کا سب سے بڑا بارود خانہ اور مہلک ٹیکنالوجی رکھنے والا ملک، بیسیوں عالمی افواج کے ساتھ ایک عشرے تک ٹامک ٹوئیاں مارتا رہا۔ اسامہ نے کہا تھا۔ ”تم مجھے زندہ گرفتار نہیں کر سکتے“ اس نے اپنے جانثار گارڈ سے کہہ رکھا تھا کہ ”جب کبھی مجھے گرفتار کرنے کی کوشش کی جائے تو میرا سینہ چھلنی کر دینا“ ایک معتبر اخباری رپورٹ کے مطابق ایسے ہی ہوا۔ کامل دس برس تک ایک شخص عالمی فرعون کے لہو میں انگاروں کی طرح دہکتا رہا۔ اس کے دل میں ترنیم کش کی طرح پیوست رہا۔ رعونت میں لتھڑے حکمران پہاڑوں سے سر پھوڑتے، وادیوں میں بھٹکتے رہے لیکن ایک ”سرکش باغی“ کو زنجیر نہ ڈال سکے۔
شہنشاہ عالم پناہ بارک اوباما نے کہا ” انصاف ہو گیا۔ یہ پوری دنیا کے لئے خوشی کا دن ہے“ اس نے دہشت گردی کے نتیجے میں ہلاک ہونے والوں کا ذکر کیا۔ یتیم ہو جانے والے بچوں، اجڑی آغوش والی ماؤں اور اولاد کھو دینے والے باپوں کا تذکرہ کیا۔ اسرائیلی وزیراعظم نے خوشی کے شادیانے بجائے۔ سارا یورپ جشن کی سی کیفیت میں آگیا۔ بھارت کا چہرہ تمتما اٹھا کابل کے چغہ پوش مسخرے کی باچھیں کھل اٹھیں۔ اور سید عبدالقادر گیلانی کے خانوادے سے تعلق کا دعویٰ کرنے والے سید زادہ ملتان اعلیٰ حضرت یوسف رضا گیلانی نے کہا۔ ”یہ فتح عظیم ہے۔“ اقتدار کی چند روزہ لذتیں بھی انسان کو کتنا کھوکھلا ، کتنا بودا، کتنا خالی خالی سا کر دیتی ہیں۔
ہمارے وزیراعظم نے ہزاروں قتل اسامہ کے کھاتے میں ڈال دیئے۔ انہیں امریکی ڈرونز کا لقمہ بننے والوں کی یاد نہ آئی جو نائن الیون کے ہلاک شدگان سے بہر حال زیادہ ہیں۔ پہلے دفتر خارجہ اور پھر وزیراعظم نے قومی تاریخ کا سب سے لغو، سب سے بے معنی، سب سے بے حمیت اور سب سے لایعنی بیان داغا کہ ”امریکہ نے سب کچھ اپنی اعلان کردہ پالیسی کے مطابق کیا ہے“ کیا معنی ہیں اس بے سروپا جملے کے، سب جانتے ہیں کہ امریکہ نے جو کچھ کیا، وہ اس کی پالیسی اس کی تاریخ، اس کے مزاج اور اس کی رعونت کے عین مطابق ہے لیکن پاکستان کی پالیسی کیا ہے؟ اگرکل امریکہ اپنے اہداف اور اپنی پالیسی کے مطابق ہمارے ایٹمی اثاثوں کے خلاف ایسا ہی آپریشن کر ڈالے تو سید زادہ کیا یہی تسلی دے گا کہ ”یہ امریکی حکومت نے اپنی طے شدہ پالیسی کے مطابق کیا ہے؟“ یہ بے حمیتی کا وہ مقام ہے جس پر بات کرتے ہوئے قلم کو بھی ندامت محسوس ہوتی ہے۔
سوالات ہیں اور ان گنت ہیں۔ کئی گھنٹے گزر جانے کے بعد بھی قوم اندھیرے میں ہے۔ سوالات کے اس لق و دق جنگل سے کوئی راستہ نہ نکلا تو پاکستان شدید مشکلات کا شکار ہو جائے گا۔ ابھی سے آثار نظر آرہے ہیں کہ اس ڈرامے کے ذریعے حکومت، فوج اور آئی۔ ایس۔ آئی کو مجرم بنا کر عالمی کٹہرے میں کھڑا کر دیا گیا ہے دیکھئے آگے دیکھئے کیا ہوتا ہے؟ اور اوباما کو کون بتائے کہ ہمارے بچے بھی درختوں پر نہیں لگتے، ماؤں کی کوکھ سے جنم لیتے ہیں اور دنیا اسامہ کے نہ رہنے سے امن نہیں پائے گی، اس دن سکون آشنا ہو گی جب فرعون مزاج امریکہ دوسروں کو بھی انسان سمجھنے لگے گا۔
اب شیخ اسامہ بن لادن کا معاملہ اپنے اللہ کے ساتھ ہے۔ جو ہر انسان کے ظاہری عمل کو بھی دیکھتا ہے اور نیتوں کا حال بھی جانتا ہے۔ اسے ہم جیسے خود فروشوں، بزدلوں، کمزوروں، شکم پرست بونوں اور بندگان امریکہ کی طرف سے ”شہادت“ کے کسی تمغے کی حاجت نہیں۔ اگر وہ اللہ کی میزان میں کم وزن نکلا تو سزا پائے گا۔ اگر اس کے اعمال بارگاہ عالی میں مقبول ٹھہرے تو اس کی لاش سمندر کی مچھلیاں کھائیں یا جنگل کے درندے، وہ شہیدوں کے جلو میں کسی سنہری مسند پر بیٹھا ہو گا۔
اگر شہنشاہ عالم برا نہ مانیں اور اس کی چوکھٹ پہ سجدہ ریز ہمارے حکمران خفا نہ ہوں تو آیئے اس کے لئے دست دعا بلند کریں۔ اللہ اس کی لغزشوں اور کوتاہیوں سے درگزر فرمائے، اسے اپنے بے پایاں عفو و کرم سے نوازے اور اسے اپنے بندگان خاص کے مقام سے سرفراز فرمائے۔ (آمین)

http://search.jang.com.pk/details.asp?nid=526163

CIA Chief Breaks Silence: Pakistan Would Have Jeopardized bin Laden Raid, ‘Impressive’ Intel Captured
By MASSIMO CALABRESI
Tuesday, May 3, 2011

MICHELE ASSELIN / CONTOUR / GETTY IMAGES FOR TIME
In his first interview since commanding the mission to kill Osama bin Laden, CIA chief Leon Panetta tells TIME that U.S. officials feared that Pakistan could have undermined the operation by leaking word to its targets. Long before Panetta ordered Vice Admiral William McRaven, head of the Joint Special Forces Command, to undertake the mission at 1:22 p.m. on Friday, the CIA had been gaming out how to structure the raid. Months prior, the U.S. had considered expanding the assault to include coordination with other countries, notably Pakistan. But the CIA ruled out participating with its nominal South Asian ally early on because “it was decided that any effort to work with the Pakistanis could jeopardize the mission. They might alert the targets,” Panetta says.

The U.S. also considered running a high-altitude bombing raid from B-2 bombers or launching a “direct shot” with cruise missiles but ruled out those options because of the possibility of “too much collateral,” Panetta says. The direct-shot option was still on the table as late as last Thursday as the CIA and then the White House grappled with how much risk to take on the mission. Waiting for more intelligence also remained a possibility. (See photos of Obama monitoring the bin Laden mission.)

On Tuesday, Panetta assembled a group of 15 aides to assess the credibility of the intelligence they had collected on the compound in Abbottabad where they believed bin Laden was hiding. They had significant “circumstantial evidence” that bin Laden was living there, Panetta says — the residents burned their trash and had extraordinary security measures — but American satellites had not been able to photograph bin Laden or any members of his family. The Tuesday meeting included team leaders from the CIA’s counterterrorism center, the special-activities division (which runs covert operations for the agency) and officials from the office of South Asian analysis.

Panetta wanted to get those aides’ opinions on the potential bin Laden mission, and he quickly found a lack of unanimity among his team. Some of the aides had been involved in the Carter Administration’s effort to go after the hostages held by the Iranians 30 years ago; others had been involved in the ill-fated “Black Hawk Down” raid against Somali warlords in 1993. “What if you go down and you’re in a firefight and the Pakistanis show up and start firing?” Panetta says some worried. “How do you fight your way out?”

But Panetta concluded that the evidence was strong enough to risk the raid, despite the fact that his aides were only 60%-80% confident that bin Laden was there, and decided to make his case to the President. At the key Thursday meeting in which President Obama heard the arguments from his top aides on whether or not to go into Pakistan to kill or capture bin Laden, Panetta admitted that the evidence of bin Laden’s presence at the compound was circumstantial. But “when you put it all together,” Panetta says he told the room, “we have the best evidence since [the 2001 battle of] Tora Bora [where bin Laden was last seen], and that then makes it clear that we have an obligation to act.”

Obama decided that Panetta’s arguments trumped two other options: striking the compound remotely or waiting until more evidence was available to prove bin Laden was there. “If I thought delaying this could in fact produce better intelligence, that would be one thing,” Panetta says he argued, “but because of the nature of the security at the compound, we’re probably at a point where we’ve got the best intelligence we can get.” (See photos of bin Laden’s Pakistan hideout.)

For weeks, Panetta had been pushing the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency to try to get photographic confirmation of the presence of the bin Laden family. “NGA was terrific at doing analysis on imagery of that compound,” he says, but “I kept struggling to say, ‘Can’t you at least try to get one of the people that looks like [bin Laden]?’ ” NGA produced photographs of the two couriers and their families that McRaven’s Navy Seal team used to identify players in the compound as they made their way toward bin Laden.

Panetta only learned that the President had been convinced by his arguments on Friday, when Obama said he was authorizing the helicopter mission and made his order official in a signed letter. After he received the order, Panetta told McRaven of the President’s decision and instructed him to launch. He told him the mission was “to go in there [and] get bin Laden, and if bin Laden isn’t there, get the hell out!”

CIA officials turned a windowless seventh-floor conference room at Langley into a command center for the mission, and Panetta watched the operation unfold from there. As he and his team waited for McRaven to report on whether bin Laden was indeed at the compound, Panetta says the room was tense. “I kept asking Bill McRaven, ‘O.K., what the hell’s this mean?,’ ” and when McRaven finally said they had ID’d “Geronimo,” the mission code name for bin Laden, “All the air we were holding came out,” Panetta says. When the helicopters left the compound 15 minutes later, the room broke into applause. (See the moment of triumph at the White House.)

The aftermath of the mission has been productive. The U.S. collected an “impressive amount” of material from bin Laden’s compound, including computers and other electronics, Panetta says. Panetta has set up a task force to act on the fresh intelligence. Intelligence reporting suggests that one of bin Laden’s wives who survived the attack has said the family had been living at the compound since 2005, a source tells TIME.

That will raise questions about the Pakistani government’s possible awareness of bin Laden’s location in recent years. But one of Panetta’s predecessors says this can work to U.S. advantage. “It opens up some opportunities for us with Pakistan,” says John McLaughlin, former deputy CIA chief. “They now should feel under some great pressure to be cooperative with us on the remaining issues,” like going after the Taliban elsewhere in the country. “It’s called leverage.”

Read more: http://swampland.time.com/2011/05/03/cia-chief-breaks-silence-u-s-ruled-out-involving-pakistan-in-bin-laden-raid-early-on/#ixzz1LMgemZNh

جائے وقوعہ سے ہزار گز کے فاصلے پر مقیم مقامی سیاست دان راجہ کامران کا موقف بھی دوسرے لوگوں سے مختلف نہیں البتہ ان کا کہنا ہے کہ انھوں نے اس رات پولیس کی ان کے بقول غیر معولی سرگرمی دیکھی۔

ان کا کہنا ہے کہ اس رات تقریباً نو بجے بعض پولیس اہلکار غیر معمولی طور پر لوگوں سے پوچھ گچھ کرتے ہوئے دیکھے۔

انھوں نے کہا کہ ’عمومی طور پر اس روڈ پر فوج ہی گشت کرتی ہے اور پولیس نہیں ہوتی اور اس اس لحاظ سے یہ غیر معمولی بات تھی۔‘ راجہ کامران نے کہا کہ انھوں نے یہ سوچا کوئی اہم شخصیت آرہی ہوگی یا واپس جارہی ہوگی جس کی وجہ سے اس روڈ پر پولیس گشت کر رہی ہے۔

ان کا کہنا ہے کہ چند گھنٹوں کے بعد ہیلی کاپٹروں کی پروازیں اور دھماکوں کی آوازیں سنی گئیں۔ لیکن ان کا کہنا ہے کہ ’اس دوران فوج یا پولیس علاقے میں موجود نہیں تھی اور وہ ہیلی کاپٹروں کے واپس جانے کے بعد وہاں پہنچے تھے۔

http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/pakistan/2011/05/110504_army_helicopter_a.shtml

Two good friends sharing (Sherry Rehman and Fazlur Rehman):

مولانا فضل الرحمان کی پریشانی

حسن کاظمی
بی بی سی اردو ڈاٹ کام، برسلز

مولانا فضل الرحمان کشمیر کمیٹی کے سربراہ کی حیثیت سے برسلز میں تھے

اسامہ بن لادن کی امریکی آپریشن میں ہلاکت کے بعد مولانا فضل الرحمان جو کشمیر کمیٹی کے چیئرمین کی حثیت سے برسلز کے دورے پر تھے سب سے زیادہ پریشان رہے۔

گو ان کے دورے کا مقصد یورپی پارلیمنٹ میں کشمیر سینٹر برسلز کے زیرِ اہتمام دو روزہ ’گلوبل ڈسکورس آن کشمیر‘ میں شرکت تھا مگر اتوار کی رات ہی سے ہر ایک اسامہ بن لادن کی ہلاکت کے بارے میں ان کی رائے جاننے کا خواہاں تھا۔

اس پروگرام میں پاکستان سے سابق وزیرِ خارجہ شاہ محمود قریشی، سابق وفاقی وزیرِ اطلاعات شیری رحمان، مسلم لیگ ن کے احسن اقبال کے علاوہ اسلامی ممالک کی تنظیم او آئی سی کے خصوصی مندوب برائے کشمیر اے عالم موجود تھے مگر تقریباًَ ہر شخص کی توجہ کا مرکز مولانا فضل الرحمان تھے۔

سوموار کو ہوٹل میں ناشتے کی میز پر شیری رحمان نے مولانا صاحب سے ازراہِ تفنن پوچھا کہ ’یہ آپ نے کیا کروا دیا ہے‘۔ جواب میں مولانا صاحب نے مسکرا کر کہا ’ہم نے کچھ نہیں کیا‘

http://www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/world/2011/05/110504_fazal_brussles_fz.shtml

Bin Laden’s Neighbors Say Compound Was Under Surveillance Since 2005

Publication: Terrorism Monitor Volume: 9 Issue: 18May 5, 2011 04:18 PM Age: 44 min
By: Arif Jamal

Locals gather outside of the compound in Abbottabad where Bin Laden was living.

Contrary to statements released by Pakistani intelligence agencies denying any knowledge of the occupants of the Abbottabad compound raided by American Special Forces units on May 1, there is evidence that the occupants of the compound housing Osama bin Laden were well known to Pakistani intelligence from the time the purpose-built compound was finished and occupied in 2005.

An official from Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) told the BBC that the compound was raided by the ISI while still under construction in 2003 when the agency believed senior al-Qaeda operative Abu Faraj al-Libi was on site. Since then, however, the official claimed the intelligence agency had taken no interest in the facility: “The compound was not on our radar; it is an embarrassment for the ISI… We’re good, but we’re not God” (BBC, May 3). However, in a statement that appeared to reveal the confusion over the incident at the highest levels of the Pakistani government, an official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed that the ISI “had been sharing information [on the compound] with the CIA and other friendly intelligence agencies since 2009” (The News [Islamabad], May 4).

The house in the garrison city of Abbottabad where Osama bin Laden apparently lived for several years before he was killed was the focus of neighbors’ attention for several reasons. The most important reason was its size. The house was many times bigger than most houses in the neighborhood and its reclusive occupants also appeared to have money to throw around. If the balls of children playing in the streets accidently landed in the compound, the children were given Rs 50 by the occupants of the house. [1] Several children told Pakistani TV channels that they had started throwing their balls into the compound on purpose. They were never refused the money (Geo TV, May 3).

However, there were also reasons for the people in the neighborhood not to suspect that this house was the residence of the most wanted terrorist in the world. The house had 12 to 16 foot high boundary walls surmounted by electrified barbed wire. There were surveillance cameras fixed on the walls. The human security around the compound created the impression that it was a secret military or intelligence facility, something the people living in garrison towns are quite used to. A neighbor explained the local lack of interest in the unusual building by saying, “Once you know a particular building belongs to the military or an intelligence agency or any law-enforcement department in Pakistan, you stop taking interest in the unusualness of the building or the activities there.” [2] The neighbors’ conclusion that it belonged to some security agency seems to have put any worries at rest.

The compound became the focus of attention soon after construction on the building started sometime in the fall of 2004. The haste with which it was built also surprised the neighbors: “The pace of construction of this house was one of the topics in our discussion with our families and with friends. We used to say either the owner is fairly rich or it is going to be a military facility, which is not uncommon in this garrison city.” [3] In a TV interview after his interrogation by the security agencies, Noor Mohammad, the contractor who built the house, said that the house was built in one and a half years (Geo TV, May 4). However, most of the neighbors’ accounts put the construction period between nine and 12 months. Mohammad noted that, unlike the usual back-and-forth negotiations between contractor and owner at various stages of construction that are typical of the residential construction process in Pakistan, the owners of the Abbottabad house never disputed costs and met all requests for additional funds promptly and without question. He also said that the construction work continued uninterrupted, which suggests some urgency. According to another contractor, it is quite possible to construct such a house in six months if the work is conducted without interruption. [4]

When the house was completed its residents moved in quickly: “Nobody knew when exactly they moved in. They probably moved in the middle of night when all of us were sleeping. The furniture and other stuff were brought in during the day, possibly before they moved in. It took some time before the neighbors realized that there were people living in that house.” [5] The few guests to the house typically arrived in the darkness and were rarely seen by the neighbors.

In a country where neighbors have strong ties and very often visit each other, the occupants of the new house discouraged their neighbors from visiting. “My wife tried to establish contacts with the women in that house more than once but was rebuffed. It was the only house in the neighborhood whose female occupants were not known to the other female [residents of the neighborhood]. I had concluded that some nuclear scientist was living there. Some of the nuclear scientists’ families are also reclusive.” [6] Interestingly, no neighbor seems to have seen another family visiting the Bin Laden family.

The neighbors’ accounts contradict official claims that the house was not on the radar of the intelligence agencies. According to several of these witnesses, the house was under continuous and heavy surveillance by the Pakistani intelligence agencies. A local resident observed: “The compound was continuously under the watch of agents of the intelligence and security agencies. They always looked suspiciously at every unusual interest in that compound by our guests. I always had the impression that it was some sort of an intelligence facility.” [7] However, no neighbor ever saw any uniformed personnel visiting the compound. According to a local journalist, it is unlikely that any of the security agents deputed to carry out human surveillance on the compound would have been given any inkling of who was living there. [8] However, it seems clear those directing the surveillance were aware of the identity of the suspects under watch in the compound, indicating that the residents were under the protection of a Pakistani intelligence agency since occupation began.

Notes:

1. Approximately 62 cents, a substantial sum for children in Pakistan.
2. Interview by a research assistant of a neighbor, Abbottabad, May 2.
3. Interview by a research assistant of a neighbor, Abbottabad, May 2.
4. Interview by a research assistant of a local contractor, Abbottabad, May 4.
5. Interview by a research assistant of a shopkeeper, Abbottabad, May 2.
6. Interview by a research assistant of a neighbor, Abbottabad, May 2.
7. Interview by a research assistant of a neighbor, Abbottabad, May 2.
8. Author’s telephone interview with a local journalist, May 3.

http://www.jamestown.org/programs/gta/single/?tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=37885&cHash=b542675e7d70bff627f297b7e40cd71f

Osama bin Laden mission agreed in secret 10 years ago by US and Pakistan

US forces were given permission to conduct unilateral raid inside Pakistan if they knew where Bin Laden was hiding, officials say

Declan Walsh in Islamabad
guardian.co.uk, Monday 9 May 2011 19.06 BST
Article history

The deal was struck between Pervez Musharraf and George Bush in 2001 and renewed during the ‘transition to democracy’ – a six-month period from February 2008 when Musharraf was still president but a civilian government had been elected. Photograph: Joshua Roberts/Reuters
The US and Pakistan struck a secret deal almost a decade ago permitting a US operation against Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil similar to last week’s raid that killed the al-Qaida leader, the Guardian has learned.

The deal was struck between the military leader General Pervez Musharraf and President George Bush after Bin Laden escaped US forces in the mountains of Tora Bora in late 2001, according to serving and retired Pakistani and US officials.

Under its terms, Pakistan would allow US forces to conduct a unilateral raid inside Pakistan in search of Bin Laden, his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and the al-Qaida No3. Afterwards, both sides agreed, Pakistan would vociferously protest the incursion.

“There was an agreement between Bush and Musharraf that if we knew where Osama was, we were going to come and get him,” said a former senior US official with knowledge of counterterrorism operations. “The Pakistanis would put up a hue and cry, but they wouldn’t stop us.”

The deal puts a new complexion on the political storm triggered by Bin Laden’s death in Abbottabad, 35 miles north of Islamabad, where a team of US navy Seals assaulted his safe house in the early hours of 2 May.

Pakistani officials have insisted they knew nothing of the raid, with military and civilian leaders issuing a strong rebuke to the US. If the US conducts another such assault, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani warned parliament on Monday, “Pakistan reserves the right to retaliate with full force.”

Days earlier, Musharraf, now running an opposition party from exile in London, emerged as one of the most vocal critics of the raid, terming it a “violation of the sovereignty of Pakistan”.

But under the terms of the secret deal, while Pakistanis may not have been informed of the assault, they had agreed to it in principle.

A senior Pakistani official said it had been struck under Musharraf and renewed by the army during the “transition to democracy” – a six-month period from February 2008 when Musharraf was still president but a civilian government had been elected.

Referring to the assault on Bin Laden’s Abbottabad compound, the official added: “As far as our American friends are concerned, they have just implemented the agreement.”

The former US official said the Pakistani protests of the past week were the “public face” of the deal. “We knew they would deny this stuff.”

The agreement is consistent with Pakistan’s unspoken policy towards CIA drone strikes in the tribal belt, which was revealed by the WikiLeaks US embassy cables last November. In August 2008, Gilani reportedly told a US official: “I don’t care if they do it, as long as they get the right people. We’ll protest in the National Assembly and then ignore it.”

As drone strikes have escalated in the tribal belt over the past year, senior civilian and military officials issued pro forma denunciations even as it became clear the Pakistani military was co-operating with the covert programme.

The former US official said that impetus for the co-operation, much like the Bin Laden deal, was driven by the US. “It didn’t come from Musharraf’s desire. On the Predators, we made it very clear to them that if they weren’t going to prosecute these targets, we were, and there was nothing they could do to stop us taking unilateral action.

“We told them, over and again: ‘We’ll stop the Predators if you take these targets out yourselves.'”

Despite several attempts to contact his London office, the Guardian has been unable to obtain comment from Musharraf.

Since Bin Laden’s death, Pakistan has come under intense US scrutiny, including accusations that elements within Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence helped hide the al-Qaida leader.

On Sunday, President Barack Obama said Bin Laden must have had “some sort of support network” inside Pakistan.

“We don’t know whether there might have been some people inside of government, outside of government, and that’s something we have to investigate,” Obama said.

Gilani has stood firmly by the ISI, describing it as a “national asset”, and said claims that Pakistan was “in cahoots” with al-Qaida were “disingenuous”.

“Allegations of complicity or incompetence are absurd,” he said. “We didn’t invite Osama bin Laden to Pakistan.”

Gilani said the army had launched an investigation into how Bin Laden managed to hide inside Pakistan. Senior generals will give a briefing on the furore to parliament next Friday.

Gilani paid lip-service to the alliance with America and welcomed a forthcoming visit from the US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, but pointedly paid tribute to help from China, whom he described as “a source of inspiration for the people of Pakistan”.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/09/osama-bin-laden-us-pakistan-deal

………..

Secret Pakistani Deal with US on Bin Laden

Posted on 05/10/2011 by Juan
It turns out that when President Obama ordered the Navy SEALs to get Usama Bin Laden in Abbotabad, he did not infringe against Pakistani sovereignty after all. Rather, he was acting in accordance with a longstanding secret agreement between Washington and Islamabad, according to The Guardian. The agreement even stipulated that the Pakistani government would be constrained by public opinion to condemn the US action in the aftermath, however insincere the rebuke might be.

Those who are unnecessarily worrying that Obama’s raid was lawless or set a precedent can rest easy; the only precedent is not military, but rather for back-room deals among governments who then put on public Kabuki plays.

The shadowy agreement explains why Prime Minister Gilani gave such a tepid speech on the whole affair. He demanded no apology from the United States, appointed no commission of inquiry, and did not seem unduly alarmed (because he was not). He said that Bin Laden’s demise greatly benefited Pakistan, on which, he said, Bin Laden had declared war. Gilani, a relatively secular politician from a prominent Sufi family of Multan, was no doubt delighted to have Bin Laden out of the way. He did push back against suggestions that the Pakistani military knowingly harbored Bin Laden, though he admitted that the terrorist’s residence in Abbottabad was an embarrassment. Maybe not as big an embarrassment, he archly suggested, as invading a whole country such as Iraq on the basis of mistaken intelligence about WMD. But an embarrassment nevertheless.

Aljazeera reported on the speech, but went to press before the Guardian’s revelation.

The Guardian reports that a decade ago, then Pakistani dictator Gen. Pervez Musharraf made a deal with Washington acknowledging that US troops could come into Pakistan to strike at top al-Qaeda leaders whenever they liked. Aware that any such incursion would be unpopular, Musharraf warned his new American patrons that the Government of Pakistan would likely condemn it in public so as to assuage the population. The agreement was reaffirmed during the transition to civilian, parliamentary rule, in spring-summer of 2008, according to The Guardian

In August of 2008, as the civilian government was about to take over from Gen. Musharraf, US officials met with Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani . He pledged to them that the Pakistani military would prosecute to the end its then campaign in Bajaur against the Pakistani Taliban. The US embassy reported back to Washington,

‘ [Interior Minister Rehman] Malik suggested we hold off alleged Predator attacks until after the Bajaur operation. The PM brushed aside Rehman’s remarks and said ‘I don’t care if they do it as long as they get the right people. We’ll protest in the National Assembly and then ignore it.’

Bush & Gilani

Other cables confirm that it has been routine for US special operations forces to work in tandem with their Pakistani peers on Pakistani soil, with the secret concurrence of Chief of Staff Gen. Ashfaq Kayani.

Not only was Gilani merely going through the motions in Monday’s speech, but so was virtually the entire country. In the last couple of years, al-Qaeda’s favorability rating in Pakistan has fluctuated between 9% and 18%. I would argue that in any society, at least 10% of the people who answer polls are looney toons or have very strange politics, so in reality almost no reasonable Pakistanis thought much of Bin Laden. There have been no massive demonstrations in the wake of his killing. In June of 2007, 50,000 people are said to have come out in Lahore to demand the reinstatement of the supreme court justice who had been dismissed by the military dictator, Musharraf. They were offended by an attack on the rule of law by a general. So we know what gets Pakistanis exercised. The small scattered demonstrations against Bin Laden’s death in Pakistan during the past week, mostly by members of the minority fundamentalist party (the Jama’at-i Islami) have been a posthumous humiliation for him.

Since nearly 60 percent of Pakistanis think the US is their enemy, whatever passion the raid on Bin Laden elicited had far more to do with defense of the nation’s borders than with any admiration for al-Qaeda terrorism. Of course, 64% of Pakistanis say want better relations with the US, which has to raise questions about what they mean by that ‘enemy’ crack.

The raid on Abbotabad reopened recent wounds for many Pakistanis. This spring has been dominated by the scandal of CIA operative Raymond Davis, who shot two men in broad daylight in downtown Lahore last January, then got himself arrested while he was taking photographs of the corpses and inventorying their private effects. An extraction team from the US embassy ran over another Pakistani with their van in their haste to reach the scene, and anyway arrived too late to prevent the arrest. Davis was finally released when the US allegedly paid $2.4 million in blood money (diya) to family members, who under Islamic law have the prerogative of not pressing charges if they are satisfied with the diya offered.

Please don’t tell the Oklahoma state legislature, which recently attempted to outlaw resort to any element of Islamic law.

The Davis saga played to Pakistani fears of having been infiltrated by masses of Blackwater/ Xe operatives, anxieties stoked by the big US military footprint in the area as a result of the Afghanistan war next door. On the other hand, the polarization might be lessening. Few Pakistanis any longer admire those violent Pashtuns of southern Afghanistan who struggle against US and NATO troops

It was in a post-Davis Pakistan that the mission against Bin Laden took place. Luckily, most Pakistanis had no use for al-Qaeda, and so public anger hardly boiled over at his death. Urban middle class people even welcomed it, because they feel that al-Qaeda has made their lives insecure with its domestic bombings and has smeared them with the tag of terrorist when they travel to the west.

Ultimately, the key to the erratic behavior of the Pakistani government toward the US and its interests lies in a basic contradiction. The Pakistani elite is wedded to the $3 billion in aid that the US donated to them in 2010. That elite is also allied with the US against some of the Taliban factions. On the other hand, the Pakistani officer corps sees Afghanistan as their sphere of influence, and refuses to cede it to the US. Elements of the Inter-Services Intelligence seem to be allied with Jalaluddin Haqqani and his network, which fights the US and Karzai in Afghanistan and is based in North Waziristan.

These contradictions make it tough for the Pakistani political class to save face. But that is what Gilani and others were trying to do in his recent speech.

http://www.juancole.com/2011/05/secret-pakistani-deal-with-us-on-bin-laden.html

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