“I had invested considerable time and energy in the Pakistan
relationship over the years, and I knew how offended they would be if we
did not share this information with them. But I also knew that elements
in the Pakistani intelligence service, the ISI, maintained ties to the
Taliban, al-Qaeda, and other extremists”
The story behind the Kill Osama Elect Obama story.
……………………
The US decided not to inform Pakistan about its top-secret mission to
kill Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad as it knew that elements in the ISI
maintained close ties with the al-Qaeda and the Taliban, according to
former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
In her memoir Hard Choices, which hit book stores today, Clinton
says that top US officials, including President Barack Obama and the
then Defense Secretary Robert Gates, had detailed discussions on the
issue including the possibility of Pakistan using the occasion to launch
an attack on India.
But finally it was decided not to inform Pakistan.
“Our relationship with Pakistan, America’s nominal ally in the fight
against terrorism, was already very troubled. If the Pakistani military,
always on a hair trigger out of fear of a surprise attack from India,
discovered a secret incursion into their airspace, it was possible
they’d respond with force,” 66-year-old Clinton writes.
“We had debated whether to inform Pakistan about the raid ahead of time
in order to avoid this scenario and the complete breakdown in relations
that could follow. After all, as Bob Gates often reminded us, Pakistani
cooperation would continue to be needed to resupply our troops in
Afghanistan and pursue other terrorists in the border region,” she says
in the book.
“I had invested considerable time and energy in the Pakistan
relationship over the years, and I knew how offended they would be if we
did not share this information with them. But I also knew that elements
in the Pakistani intelligence service, the ISI, maintained ties to the
Taliban, al-Qaeda, and other extremists,” Clinton writes.
“We had been burned by leaks before. The risks of blowing the whole
operation were just too great,” said the former Secretary of State, who
is considered as a strong potential presidential candidate for the 2016
elections.
Bin Laden was killed in the garrison town of Abbottabad on May 2, 2011,
in a covert raid carried out by the Navy SEALs on a special order issued
by President Obama.
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Link: http://www.outlookindia.com/news/printitem.aspx?843921
…………
regards