Pakistan dismisses US raid fears

4 May 2011 Last updated at 05:31 GMT The BBC's Orla Guerin looks around the perimeter of Bin Laden's compound

Pakistan has hit back at US statements suggesting it could not be trusted with details of the operation which killed Osama Bin Laden.

CIA chief Leon Panetta has said no intelligence was shared with Pakistan for fear the raid would be jeopardised.

But Pakistan's Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir told the BBC this view was "disquietening" and his country had a "pivotal role" in tackling terrorism.

Bin Laden was shot dead by US special forces in Abbottabad on Sunday.

On Tuesday the White House clarified the details of how the raid took place, saying Bin Laden was unarmed when he was killed after resisting capture.

US officials have said they are considering when to make public their photographs of his corpse.

Meanwhile, Pakistan's Dawn News television channel has said a meeting of senior al-Qaeda figures is taking place to name Bin Laden's successor as head of the organisation.

Mr Bashir said Mr Panetta was entitled to his views but that his country had co-operated extensively with the US.

He said the compound in Abbottabad where Bin Laden was shot dead had been identified as suspicious some time ago by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

But it took the greater resources of the CIA to determine that it was the al-Qaeda leader's hiding place.

"Most of these things that have happened in terms of global anti-terror, Pakistan has played a pivotal role," said Mr Bashir.

"So it's a little disquieting when we have comments like this."

'Incompetent'

On Tuesday, Pakistan's foreign ministry defended the ISI and issued a lengthy statement in which it expressed "deep concerns and reservations" about the US action.

It insisted unilateral action should not become the norm and stressed that Pakistani intelligence had been sharing information with the US in recent years.

"As far as the target compound is concerned, ISI had been sharing information with CIA and other friendly intelligence agencies since 2009."

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney: Bin Laden not armed, but did resist

Bin Laden, aged 54, was the founder and leader of al-Qaeda.

He is believed to have ordered the attacks on New York and Washington on 11 September 2001, as well as a number of other deadly bombings and was American's most wanted man.

The compound in which he was killed is just a few hundred metres from the Pakistan Military Academy - the country's equivalent of Sandhurst or West Point.

The BBC's Aleem Maqbool in Abbottabad says that if Bin Laden had been there for as long as five years, it raises questions about the Pakistani authorities.

Either they were incredibly incompetent or were harbouring the al-Qaeda leader, our correspondent says.

Two couriers and one woman died in the assault, while one of Bin Laden's wives was injured.

The US has not commented on anyone it captured or had planned to capture, other than saying it had taken Bin Laden's body, which was buried at sea.

However, the Pakistani foreign ministry statement said that the rest of Bin Laden's family are now "in safe hands and being looked after in accordance with the law".

US officials are discussing how and when to release pictures of Bin Laden's body to counter conspiracy theories that he did not die.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said the "gruesome" image could inflame sensitivities, but Mr Panetta said there was no question it would at some point be shown to the public.

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VIDEO: Osama Bin Laden killed in Pakistan

2 May 2011 Last updated at 09:24 GMT Help

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US forces kill Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan

2 May 2011 Last updated at 09:12 GMT Bin Laden was top of the US "most wanted" list Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden has been killed by US forces in Pakistan, President Barack Obama has said.

Bin Laden was killed in a ground operation outside Islamabad based on US intelligence, the first lead for which emerged last August.

Mr Obama said after "a firefight", US forces took possession of the body.

Bin Laden is believed to be the mastermind of the attacks on New York and Washington on 11 September 2001 and a number of others.

He was top of the US' "most wanted" list.

Mr Obama said it was "the most significant achievement to date in our nation's effort to defeat al-Qaeda".

The US has put its embassies around the world on alert, warning Americans of the possibility of al-Qaeda reprisal attacks for Bin Laden's killing.

Crowds gathered outside the White House in Washington DC, chanting "USA, USA" after the news emerged.

A US official quoted by Associated Press news agency said Bin Laden's body had been buried at sea, although this has not been confirmed.

Compound raided

Bin Laden had approved the 9/11 attacks in which nearly 3,000 people died.

Continue reading the main story Roger Hardy Islamic affairs analyst

How will al-Qaeda react? In the short term, the Obama administration is already bracing itself for possible revenge attacks. But for many the bigger question is whether, in the longer run, al-Qaeda can survive.

Since the start of the year, some experts have argued that the uprisings in the Arab world have rendered it irrelevant. They will see Bin Laden's death as confirming the trend. Perhaps.

But the root causes of radical Islam - the range of issues that enabled al-Qaeda to recruit disaffected young Muslims to its cause - remain, for the most part, unaddressed. The death of Bin Laden will strike at the morale of the global jihad, but is unlikely to end it.

He evaded the forces of the US and its allies for almost a decade, despite a $25m bounty on his head.

Mr Obama said he had been briefed last August on a possible lead to Bin Laden's whereabouts.

"It was far from certain, and it took many months to run this thread to ground," Mr Obama said.

"I met repeatedly with my national security team as we developed more information about the possibility that we had located Bin Laden hiding within a compound deep inside of Pakistan.

"And finally, last week, I determined that we had enough intelligence to take action, and authorised an operation to get Osama Bin Laden and bring him to justice," the president said.

On Sunday a team of US forces undertook the operation in Abbottabad, 100km (62 miles) north-east of Islamabad.

After a "firefight" Bin Laden was killed and his body taken by US forces, the president said.

Mr Obama said "no Americans were harmed".

Giving more details of the operation, a senior US official said a small US team had conducted the raid in about 40 minutes.

One helicopter was lost due to "technical failure". The team destroyed it and left in its other aircraft.

Three other men were killed in the raid - one of Bin Laden's sons and two couriers - the official said, adding that one woman was also killed when she was used as "a shield" and two other women were injured.

The size and complexity of the structure in Abbottabad had "shocked" US officials.

Barack Obama gives a statement confirming the death of Osama Bin Laden

It had 4m-6m (12ft-18ft) walls, was eight times larger than other homes in the area and was valued at "several million dollars", though it had no telephone or internet connection.

The US official said that intelligence had been tracking a "trusted courier" of Bin Laden for many years. The courier's identity was discovered four years ago, his area of operation two years ago and then, last August, his residence in Abbottabad was found, triggering the start of the mission.

Another senior US official said that no intelligence had been shared with any country, including Pakistan, ahead of the raid.

"Only a very small group of people inside our own government knew of this operation in advance," the official said.

The Abbottabad residence is just a few hundred metres from the Pakistan Military Academy - the country's equivalent of West Point.

The senior US official warned that the possibility of revenge attacks had now created "a heightened threat to the homeland and to US citizens and facilities abroad".

But the official added that "the loss of Bin Laden puts the group on a path of decline that will be difficult to reverse".

He said Bin Laden's probable successor, Ayman al-Zawahiri, was "far less charismatic and not as well respected within the organisation", according to reports from captured al-Qaeda operatives.

'Momentous achievement'

Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Bin Laden had "paid for his actions".

A Pakistani government statement said Bin Laden's death "illustrates the resolve of the international community, including Pakistan, to fight and eliminate terrorism".

Former US President George W Bush described the news as a "momentous achievement".

"The fight against terror goes on, but tonight America has sent an unmistakable message: No matter how long it takes, justice will be done," Mr Bush said in a statement.

BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says that, to many in the West, Bin Laden became the embodiment of global terrorism, but to others he was a hero, a devout Muslim who fought two world superpowers in the name of jihad.

The son of a wealthy Saudi construction family, Bin Laden grew up in a privileged world. But soon after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan he joined the mujahideen there and fought alongside them with his Arab followers, a group that later formed the nucleus for al-Qaeda.

After declaring war on America in 1998, Bin Laden is widely believed to have been behind the bombings of US embassies in East Africa, the attack on the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000 and the attacks on New York and Washington.

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Pakistan wrap up W Indies series

Third one-day international, Barbados:
Pakistan 177-7 (40.1 overs) beat West Indies 171 (43.4 overs) by three wickets
(Match reduced to 45 overs per side)
Match scorecard Saeed Ajmal celebrates one of his three wickets
Pakistan survived a few scares to pass West Indies' modest 171 in Barbados and take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match one-day series.

In a match reduced to 45 overs per side, Saeed Ajmal and Wahab Riaz each took three wickets to make short work of the Windies batting line-up.

Early strikes from Ravi Rampaul then left Pakistan in trouble at 12-3.

But Misbah-ul-Haq's patient 62 not out saw Pakistan sneak home, winning by three wickets with 29 balls remaining.

Rampaul (4-32) took two wickets with his first two balls, and followed up with a quick third to ensure caution would be the better part of valour for Pakistan's batsmen on a slightly damp but true wicket.

Misbah played the vital innings, sensibly realising the runs could safely be obtained without resorting to injudicious shots.

Pakistan were back on track after Misbah and Hammad Azam (36) had moved the score to 127-4, but spinner Devendra Bishoo responded with three wickets of his own to bring some excitement to the finale.

Misbah, however, would not be budged and a winning six from Riaz did the job.

Earlier, West Indies' batting proved inadequate despite a good start from Lendl Simmons (51). Ajmal and Riaz found wickets far too easy to come by, putting Pakistan firmly on top.

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Pakistan drone attack 'kills 25'

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Pakistan seeks Musharraf's arrest

12 February 2011 Last updated at 12:06 GMT Experts say that there is little prospect so far of Pervez Musharraf being indicted A Pakistani anti-terrorism court has issued an arrest warrant for former military ruler Pervez Musharraf over the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto in 2007.

Prosecutors say he was aware of Taliban plans to target her but did not act to prevent her murder in Rawalpindi.

They accuse him of failing to provide adequate security for the former PM.

Mr Musharraf - who lives in self-imposed exile in London - denies the allegations.

His spokesman, Fawad Chaudhry, said Mr Musharraf had no intention of returning to Pakistan for the hearing.

"There is no basis for the case. This is a politically motivated court ruling and the [former] president has no intention of complying."

Ms Bhutto was killed while in a gun and suicide attack while travelling in an election motorcade in the city of Rawalpindi in December 2007.

She was twice prime minister of Pakistan, from 1988 to 1990, and from 1993 to 1996.

Questionnaire sent Benazir Bhutto's assassination sent shockwaves across Pakistan

On Saturday, prosecutors at the anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi said that any further progress in investigating Ms Bhutto's assassination was not possible without Mr Musharraf's presence.

They said they had tried repeatedly to contact Mr Musharraf over the case but he had refused to co-operate.

They added that he would be declared a wanted fugitive if he did not appear for the next hearing on 19 February.

A questionnaire was also sent to Mr Musharraf's London address, but had never been returned, the court said.

Last year, the Pakistani authorities arrested two senior police officers suspected of not giving adequate protection to Ms Bhutto at the time of her murder.

According to prosecutors, the two officials told investigators that on the orders of Mr Musharraf they removed a security detail for Ms Bhutto just before she departed the venue where she was speaking in Rawalpindi.

She was killed shortly afterwards.

Mr Musharraf denies all the allegations, describing them as politically-motivated.

He has not publicly commented on the issuing of the arrest warrant.

Mr Musharraf seized power in 1999 when, as chief of Pakistan's army, he ousted elected Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a coup. He resigned as president in 2008.

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