Pakistan walks a tight rope on the Osama issue
Friday, 6 May 2011
Zaglul Ahmed Chowdhury
Pakistan is facing a number of vexing and embarrassing questions on the issue of Osama bin Laden, the founder and leader of Al Qaeda, who was killed by the Americans in a military operation in Abbottabad, near capital Islamabad. While Pakistan government is not shedding tears for the late Saudi-born chief of the organisation that is widely perceived as a terrorist outfit, the issues that are coming to the fore include such vexed matters like whether Pakistan was aware of the mission to nab or kill bin Laden and more importantly, if it at all knew the whereabouts of the late Al Qaeda leader. Fingers are being pointed at Pakistan's powerful military and its influential intelligence agency ISI on the question whether they were aware of the American operation in the heart of Pakistan and if they were, what was their role in the entire exercise that led to the killing of bin Laden. The matter related to the country's sovereignty is also being discussed very intensely in Pakistan and also outside in the context of the American military mission that was carried out with great precision inside Pakistan. The issue has become more sensitive after Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and several other key figures expressed themselves in a manner that is not much in conformity with what United States President Barack Obama said about Islamabad's involvement in the bin Laden mission. Obama said that he spoke to the Pakistan president and others in America involved in the hunt for bin Laden were also in touch with their Pakistani counterparts. But Zardari, although not directly rebutting the US president's comments, made it quite clear that his country's association with the matter was scant and the mission was essentially an American exercise. This brings the two sides holding nearly the opposite stances and this cannot come as relishing for Islamabad, which is already experiencing strains in its ties with Washington on a variety of issues. Besides, the credibility and efficiency of the ISI has also come into question if at all Pakistan means that it too was involved in the hunt for bin Laden and did not shelter him. Several quarters in the US believe that Pakistan might have been protecting bin Laden despite its official pronouncements otherwise, and the latest developments, these quarters say, bear out their views since bin Laden was found and killed at a place almost under the very nose of the Pakistan authorities. Nevertheless, Islamabad continues to deny that it had any knowledge of bin Laden's whereabouts - a contention very few would like to accept. Islamabad-Washington relations are passing through bad patches for sometime past even though the two countries are close allies and the former is acting as the main helping hand to the US in the latter's 'fight against terror' that began with the attacks in the United States in 2001. The sensational onslaughts in America by Al Qaeda killed nearly three thousand people, including the destruction of the landmark Twin Towers in New York city. The then president George W Bush was quick to launch a military operation against the Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden and his supporters by toppling the radical Islamic "Taliban" regime in Afghanistan, where bin Laden lived. But the Al Qaeda leader himself remained elusive till he was found and killed the other day in Pakistan. NATO forces in collusion with Islamabad are confronting a Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan and also to an extent within Pakistan for nearly a decade. Now, the killing of bin Laden has delivered a big blow to the insurgency, notwithstanding that the Taliban say they would avenge the death of bin Laden and increase their activities. It appears that Pakistan is taking care to distance itself from the killing of bin Laden, as it is probably conscious that Islamabad's active complicity in such an act will not pay dividends in the country and also in the Islamic world despite the fact that Laden is not admired by all. However, he had supporters and followers who have now announced that Pakistan would be their "First target" for avenging bin Laden's death. Evidently, Pakistan wants to distance itself from bin Laden's killing and the refusal of the country that it was in the thick of the game can be seen in that context. On the other hand, the US seems keen to take Islamabad on board and wants to give the impression that an important Islamic nation was very much in the picture of the killing of bin Laden. President Obama has described bin Laden neither Islamic nor a Muslim leader and also sought to make it clear that the military action against bin Laden was not a war against Islam. For Pakistan, the difficulty is its vulnerability in posing itself as a leader of the Islamic world in one hand and belligerence, on the other, to Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden, who do not represent Islam as such, but seem to many as serving Islamic causes. The Pakistan-American bilateral ties received setbacks in recent times owing to such issues like the Drone attacks on Pakistan soil that often kill innocent people and the murder of two Pakistanis by CIA contractor Raymond Davies, who was eventually released from captivity under pressure from Washington and some other quarters. At a time when the two countries were making efforts to repair the damages in ties, the bin Laden issue seems to have appeared as a potential element to further queer the pitch. Pakistan is obviously facing delicate foreign policy and domestic security situation and it remains to be seen how these conditions are being tackled by its leadership. In the United States, in the aftermath of bin Laden killing, two theories have apparently emerged. First, Islamabad should get a rough treatment in terms of aid and assistance since it "probably harboured" bin Laden. Second one is different - Pakistan must not come under pressure as the country has taken much pains and further strain may boomerang on the US. President Obama appears to be in line with the last one as the US cannot afford to jettison a key ally at a critical time of the Afghan war. E-mail : zaglulbss@yahoo.com
Pakistan is facing a number of vexing and embarrassing questions on the issue of Osama bin Laden, the founder and leader of Al Qaeda, who was killed by the Americans in a military operation in Abbottabad, near capital Islamabad. While Pakistan government is not shedding tears for the late Saudi-born chief of the organisation that is widely perceived as a terrorist outfit, the issues that are coming to the fore include such vexed matters like whether Pakistan was aware of the mission to nab or kill bin Laden and more importantly, if it at all knew the whereabouts of the late Al Qaeda leader. Fingers are being pointed at Pakistan's powerful military and its influential intelligence agency ISI on the question whether they were aware of the American operation in the heart of Pakistan and if they were, what was their role in the entire exercise that led to the killing of bin Laden. The matter related to the country's sovereignty is also being discussed very intensely in Pakistan and also outside in the context of the American military mission that was carried out with great precision inside Pakistan. The issue has become more sensitive after Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and several other key figures expressed themselves in a manner that is not much in conformity with what United States President Barack Obama said about Islamabad's involvement in the bin Laden mission. Obama said that he spoke to the Pakistan president and others in America involved in the hunt for bin Laden were also in touch with their Pakistani counterparts. But Zardari, although not directly rebutting the US president's comments, made it quite clear that his country's association with the matter was scant and the mission was essentially an American exercise. This brings the two sides holding nearly the opposite stances and this cannot come as relishing for Islamabad, which is already experiencing strains in its ties with Washington on a variety of issues. Besides, the credibility and efficiency of the ISI has also come into question if at all Pakistan means that it too was involved in the hunt for bin Laden and did not shelter him. Several quarters in the US believe that Pakistan might have been protecting bin Laden despite its official pronouncements otherwise, and the latest developments, these quarters say, bear out their views since bin Laden was found and killed at a place almost under the very nose of the Pakistan authorities. Nevertheless, Islamabad continues to deny that it had any knowledge of bin Laden's whereabouts - a contention very few would like to accept. Islamabad-Washington relations are passing through bad patches for sometime past even though the two countries are close allies and the former is acting as the main helping hand to the US in the latter's 'fight against terror' that began with the attacks in the United States in 2001. The sensational onslaughts in America by Al Qaeda killed nearly three thousand people, including the destruction of the landmark Twin Towers in New York city. The then president George W Bush was quick to launch a military operation against the Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden and his supporters by toppling the radical Islamic "Taliban" regime in Afghanistan, where bin Laden lived. But the Al Qaeda leader himself remained elusive till he was found and killed the other day in Pakistan. NATO forces in collusion with Islamabad are confronting a Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan and also to an extent within Pakistan for nearly a decade. Now, the killing of bin Laden has delivered a big blow to the insurgency, notwithstanding that the Taliban say they would avenge the death of bin Laden and increase their activities. It appears that Pakistan is taking care to distance itself from the killing of bin Laden, as it is probably conscious that Islamabad's active complicity in such an act will not pay dividends in the country and also in the Islamic world despite the fact that Laden is not admired by all. However, he had supporters and followers who have now announced that Pakistan would be their "First target" for avenging bin Laden's death. Evidently, Pakistan wants to distance itself from bin Laden's killing and the refusal of the country that it was in the thick of the game can be seen in that context. On the other hand, the US seems keen to take Islamabad on board and wants to give the impression that an important Islamic nation was very much in the picture of the killing of bin Laden. President Obama has described bin Laden neither Islamic nor a Muslim leader and also sought to make it clear that the military action against bin Laden was not a war against Islam. For Pakistan, the difficulty is its vulnerability in posing itself as a leader of the Islamic world in one hand and belligerence, on the other, to Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden, who do not represent Islam as such, but seem to many as serving Islamic causes. The Pakistan-American bilateral ties received setbacks in recent times owing to such issues like the Drone attacks on Pakistan soil that often kill innocent people and the murder of two Pakistanis by CIA contractor Raymond Davies, who was eventually released from captivity under pressure from Washington and some other quarters. At a time when the two countries were making efforts to repair the damages in ties, the bin Laden issue seems to have appeared as a potential element to further queer the pitch. Pakistan is obviously facing delicate foreign policy and domestic security situation and it remains to be seen how these conditions are being tackled by its leadership. In the United States, in the aftermath of bin Laden killing, two theories have apparently emerged. First, Islamabad should get a rough treatment in terms of aid and assistance since it "probably harboured" bin Laden. Second one is different - Pakistan must not come under pressure as the country has taken much pains and further strain may boomerang on the US. President Obama appears to be in line with the last one as the US cannot afford to jettison a key ally at a critical time of the Afghan war. E-mail : zaglulbss@yahoo.com