ISLAMABAD – Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani Monday
rejected allegations that the killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. troops in the
country showed Pakistani incompetence or complicity in hiding the al Qaeda
leader.
Opposition politicians have stepped up their criticism of Pakistan's leaders
over the killing of bin Laden in a raid by U.S. special forces in a northern
Pakistani town on May 2.
Pakistan welcomed the death of bin Laden, who plotted the September 11, 2001,
airliner attacks on the United States, as a step in the fight against militancy
but also complained that the raid was a violation of its sovereignty.
The fact that bin Laden was found hiding in the garrison town of Abbottabad,
50 km (30 miles) from the capital, has led to accusations that Pakistani
security agencies were either incompetent or sheltering the world's most wanted
man.
"Allegations of complicity or incompetence are absurd," Gilani said in a
televised address to parliament, adding that it was disingenuous for anyone to
accuse Pakistan, including its spy agency, of "being in cahoots" with the al
Qaeda network.
The U.S. raid has added to strains in ties between Islamabad and Washington,
which are crucial to combating Islamist militants and to bringing stability to
Afghanistan.
The United States has stopped short of accusing Pakistan of providing shelter
to bin Laden but Islamabad is under pressure to explain how bin Laden found
refuge.
Gilani warned that unilateral actions such as the U.S. Navy SEALs swoop on
bin Laden's hideout ran the risk of serious consequences, but he added that
Pakistan attached high importance to its relations with the United States.
Pakistan's main opposition party has called on Gilani and President Asif Ali
Zardari to resign over the breach of sovereignty by U.S. special forces who
slipped in from Afghanistan on helicopters to storm the compound where bin Laden
was holed up.
"I think it is a big blow to Pakistan's sovereignty, Pakistan's independence
and Pakistan's self-respect," former prime minister Nawaz Sharif told reporters
in Lahore. "Pakistan is in a grave crisis and is surrounded by big danger."
Domestic critics say the U.S. raid also raises questions about the safety of
Pakistan's cherished nuclear weapons but Gilani said any move against them would
be met with "a matching response."
"Pakistan reserves the right to retaliate with full force," he said. Reuters
