World News Pakistan

Amid Crisis, President of Pakistan Visits Dubai

2012-01-14T02:46:00.001-08:00

January 12, 2012

By SALMAN MASOOD

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — President Asif Ali Zardari flew to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, on Thursday on what an aide said was a short visit for a wedding from which he would return overnight. The move was surprising, coming as tensions between the civilian government and the country’s powerful military have risen sharply and drawn in the judiciary.
“President Zardari has gone to Dubai to attend the wedding of a son of a friend,” said Farhatullah Babar, Mr. Zardari’s spokesman. Mr. Babar identified the friend as Arif Zarooni, a man close to the rulers of Dubai, where Mr. Zardari maintains a residence. His last visit there, on Dec. 6 for medical treatment, set off speculation about his political future. Many were surprised by his return to Pakistan later in the month.
Later, the Pakistani news channel Geo TV quoted Mr. Babar as saying that Mr. Zardari had returned early Friday.
The frictions between the military and civilian leaders have been intensifying since the American operation in Pakistan in May that killed Osama bin Laden. The strains worsened sharply in October after an American businessman of Pakistani descent published a memo that he said was drafted by the government shortly after Bin Laden was killed and which appeared to solicit help from the United States in reining in the Pakistani military, smarting from the American raid.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani fired the secretary of defense, Khalid Naeem Lodhi, a retired general and confidant of the army chief, accusing him of misconduct. The military leadership issued a strong statement warning Mr. Gilani that recent criticism of the chiefs of the army and intelligence service would have “serious ramifications with potentially grievous consequences for the country.”
Mr. Gilani had accused Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, the army chief, and Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha, the head of the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, of violating the Constitution by submitting statements in the Supreme Court in which they said the controversial memo was authentic and urged the judges to investigate its origins.
A three-member judicial panel is holding an inquiry into the memo and will resume its hearing on Jan. 16. A separate bench of the Supreme Court is scheduled to convene that day to hear the government’s explanation for failing to comply with earlier court orders to reopen corruption cases against Mr. Zardari.
Some opposition politicians and analysts accuse the governing Pakistan Peoples Party of having manufactured the intense acrimony as a political strategy.
“The P.P.P. leadership wants to become political martyrs by provoking the army and goading it to boot the government out,” said Enver Baig, a former senator.
“The government has nothing to show to the people and its performance is all marred with corruption and mismanagement. They are by design taking this confrontation to gain political mileage and capital.”
“The only solution to the current impasse is an early election,” Mr. Baig added. General elections are due in 2013, but there are growing calls for early polls.
Meanwhile, others see the government’s situation as being trapped in a tightening vise.
“Pakistan’s military is in no mood” for a coup, said Raza Rumi, a columnist. “The real threat for the government is a proactive Supreme Court which has taken a serious notice of noncompliance with its orders.
“The civilian government is stuck between two powerful institutions, which are no longer comfortable with business as usual.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/13/world/asia/amid-crisis-pakistan-president-asif-ali-zardari-heads-again-to-dubai.html?sq=pakistan&st=cse&scp=2&pagewanted=print

As Crisis Festers, Pakistani Government Plans Confidence Vote

2012-01-14T02:34:00.000-08:00

January 13, 2012

By DECLAN WALSH

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Threatened with prosecution by a hostile judiciary and fearing an intervention by powerful generals, Pakistan’s embattled government turned Friday to its last bastion of strength, the national Parliament, in a bid to stall the momentum of a crisis that threatens to engulf the governing party.
Addressing Parliament, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani announced that he would ask for a vote Monday on a resolution seeking “full confidence and trust” in his coalition government. It was his latest gambit in a complex power struggle set off by the American raid that killed Osama bin Laden in May.
Pakistan’s fractious politicians must choose between “democracy and dictatorship,” Mr. Gilani said, speaking hours after President Asif Ali Zardari returned from a brief trip to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, that reignited rumors of an impending military coup.
Pakistani analysts and Western diplomats believe that the prospects of a coup are receding, for now. But the situation remains volatile as the country’s most powerful figures — senior judges, generals and politicians — engage in a bare-knuckle and unusually public bout of power games in which the United States finds itself sidelined.
At heart, the governing Pakistan Peoples Party and the military, led by Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, are struggling for control of national security policy, including the right to direct the strained relationship with the United States. A strident judiciary and the possibility of elections as early as this summer add complicating factors.
The beginning of the struggle came in the fall, when an American businessman of Pakistani origin, Mansoor Ijaz, made a startling claim: that in the acrid aftermath of the Bin Laden raid on May 2, he had been asked to take a secret letter to the Americans seeking protection for Mr. Zardari’s government from a possible military coup. In exchange, it offered to dismantle part of the country’s powerful spy agency.
Pakistan’s military angrily demanded an investigation into the unsigned memo and embraced Mr. Ijaz’s assertion that it had been dictated by Husain Haqqani, Pakistan’s ambassador to Washington. Mr. Haqqani, since recalled to Pakistan, has denied that account.
However, the military ignored a later statement by Mr. Ijaz that Lt. Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha, the head of the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, or ISI, visited the Persian Gulf region during the same period to seek support for a coup.
A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court is investigating what the Pakistani news outlets call “Memogate” and is scheduled to make its finding by month’s end. Meanwhile Mr. Haqqani, who could face treason charges, has confined himself to Mr. Gilani’s house in Islamabad, telling reporters that he fears for his life.
The true target of the inquiry may be Mr. Haqqani’s boss: Mr. Zardari, leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party. The P.P.P. and the military have a deep mutual mistrust going back three decades. Many generals barely disguise their loathing for the president, who came to power in 2008, in elections after the assassination of his wife, Benazir Bhutto, and who has struggled to shake off a reputation of irredeemable corruption.
For most of 2011, his government sought to ease the tension by defending the embattled generals, particularly against withering domestic criticism after the Bin Laden raid from a public distrustful of the United States and fiercely protective of their nation’s sovereignty. But the rising emotions over the Memogate crisis swept any unity away.
In December, Mr. Gilani said he would not tolerate a “state within a state”; this week he fired the senior bureaucrat in the Defense Ministry, a retired three-star general. That day, the military issued a warning that the government’s statements could have “very serious ramifications with potentially grievous consequences for the country.”
One analyst saw two rationales for the military’s furious stance over the memo. First, it could be using the Supreme Court to “get Zardari out,” said Najam Sethi, editor of The Friday Times and a senior analyst with Geo, the country’s largest television news network. Second, he said, “Kayani and Pasha have both been considerably weakened by the actions of the Americans.”
“They are having to act extra tough to appease their own ranks,” Mr. Sethi said.
The conflict shows that the military “is rigid and uncompromising and not prepared to concede an inch of its turf,” he added. “It wants to run foreign policy, it wants to be able to do whatever it wants, and doesn’t want any accountability at all.”
In the past, the military has ended frustrations with civilian governments with coups, in 1958, 1969, 1977 and 1999.
This time, analysts say, the military has little incentive for such a move. The economy is in a parlous state, a homegrown Taliban insurgency bubbles in the northwest, and the generals are still smarting from the damage to their reputation from the unpopular nine-year-rule of Pervez Musharraf, which began in the most recent coup and ended in 2008.
In addition, there is unprecedented, real-time scrutiny from a vociferous electronic news media. And the generals can no longer count on the Supreme Court to rubber-stamp a takeover — although the judiciary led by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry appears to have its own antipathy for Mr. Zardari and the P.P.P.
As the scandal raged, the court upped the stakes by renewing its order that the government cooperate with a Swiss corruption investigation against Mr. Zardari. The court accused Mr. Gilani of “willful disobedience” for not doing so, and gave the government until Monday to comply. Failure could lead to Mr. Gilani’s losing his office, it has warned, offering the prospect of a disastrous clash of institutions.
Whether Mr. Chaudhry would risk such a standoff is unclear.
The likelihood of early elections is far greater. As power drains from Mr. Zardari’s government, few believe it will last until the Parliament’s term ends in February 2013. The question is when the vote would take place, and on whose terms.
The government’s objective is to survive until Senate elections, which are to be held before March. Senators are elected by the national and provincial assemblies, and the election will probably give the P.P.P. a majority of seats and control of the upper house for six years.
But a major opposition leader, Nawaz Sharif, favors early general elections — to avert such a Senate outcome and to stem the threat from a new rival, the former cricket star turned politician Imran Khan. Mr. Khan is a wild card, drawing huge crowds at recent rallies in Lahore and Karachi and threatening Mr. Sharif’s base in Punjab Province. Critics accuse him of enjoying the tacit support of the ISI.
“I don’t think the army will mount a coup because they don’t need one when they have Imran Khan,” said C. Christine Fair, an assistant professor at Georgetown University.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/14/world/asia/amid-crisis-parliament-in-pakistan-to-vote-on-affirming-civilian-rule.html?sq=pakistan&st=cse&scp=3&pagewanted=print

The Imran Khan Phenomenon

2012-01-13T00:29:00.001-08:00

Is Pakistan’s cricket star-turned-politician for real?

BY ARIF RAFIQ | JANUARY 12, 2012

In 1992, with his cricket career at its twilight, anaging Imran Khan boldly pledged that the Pakistani national team would win the WorldCup for the first time. In March of that year, before a packed stadium inMelbourne, Pakistan defeated former colonial master England, taking the cup andshocking the world of cricket. Khan returned home with a trophy in his hands,enshrined forever as a national hero.

These days, Khan leads another group of underdogs: a political party known asthe Pakistan Tehreek-e Insaf (PTI). Last September, Khan made a familiarly boldprediction: PTI, which has only won a single National Assembly seat in its15-year history, will sweep the next general elections. PTI, Khan says withouta semblance of doubt, will rid Pakistan of corruption, endemic poverty, andviolence -- and eventually bring the country to what he sees as its rightfulplace on the world stage.

Since his retirement from cricket, Khan has been devoted to social work andpolitics. Inspired by his mother's death, he founded the world-class ShaukatKhanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Center, trusted and respected byPakistanis of all stripes. Khan's political career, however, has been another story. PTI, despite theinitial hype and fanfare, never really took off. Its founding members left thescene early on, and Khan was regularly outsmarted by wilier politicos.

A solitary Khan would regularly lambast the political class on Pakistan's many talkshows. Critics dismissed him as the darling of the country's television anchorsand the electorally irrelevant "burger-baby"and "mummy-daddy" types (i.e. coddled, Westernized, rootless, upper-middleclass youth). Political satire shows lampooned him as araving, repetitive political loser.

In 2005, Sheikh Rashid Ahmad, then a backer of military ruler Pervez Musharraf,mocked Khan and patronizingly offered to help him win a seat "anywhere he wants."Fast forward six years ahead, and Sheikh Rashid, seated next to Khan on livetelevision, was ingratiatingly referring to the ex-cricketer as a "brother"and meekly asking him for help in winning a few seats in the next elections.

Once an electoral non-entity, Khan's PTI could potentially win dozens ofNational Assembly seats in the next polls -- hence the Pauline conversion ofopportunists like Sheikh Rashid. Already, PTI has upended the détente betweenthe two major political powers -- the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the PakistanMuslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) -- and put both on the defensive. PTI might becomethe country's third-largest party, giving it the power to determine who headsPakistan's next coalition government. Khan, no longer a political joke, is apotential kingmaker positioned to prove the doubters wrong once again.

Pakistan's political class began to take PTI seriously last fall as the partyorganized a series of large rallies in Punjab, the country's largest provinceand home to its most competitive elections. In late October, PTI beat allexpectations and gathered more than 100,000 people in Lahore, the home turf ofthe PML-N. The jalsa, or gathering, was asmartly choreographed and nationally televised spectacle, featuring religiousconservatives, students from the city's elite schools, and well-to-dohousewives. Together, they listened to rousing speeches by politicians and musicalperformances by the country's top pop artists, and sang the national anthem. Anarticle in the web edition of Pakistan's ExpressTribune declared, "ImranKhan's 'tsunami' sweeps Lahore." In Lahore, Khan proved he was able tomobilize large numbers of potential voters in a keyconstituency, signaling to political free agents that his party has afundraising and logistical network that can get out the vote on Election Day.

Despite his newfound success, the core of Khan's message has remained the sameover the years. He has railed against what he describes as a corrupt, venalpolitical class and an invasive, bullying America. In 1996, he called Asif AliZardari, then Pakistan's first husband, the country's "biggest disease."He continues to describe Zardari, now the president, as a major impediment toPakistan's progress. In 2004, Khan opposed Pakistani military operations in theFederally Administered Tribal Areas, warning that once a war with the local tribesbegins, "the entirearmy will be stuck in the tribal areas forever." In 2011, he wasinstrumental in forging a consensus statement at an all-parties conference thatcalled for talks with the Taliban.

With tensions rising with the United States and a faltering economy, Khan isstriking a chord in Pakistan unlike ever before. Pakistanis, ravaged by thescourge of terrorism during the decade after 9/11, saw themselves as casualtiesof America's war in Afghanistan. Now, after an ugly downturn in U.S.-Pakistanrelations in 2011 -- including the humiliating Abbottabad raid to capture Osamabin Laden -- many believe America's actual target is Pakistan itself.

Khan's supporters see him as the most credible advocate for ending Islamabad'ssupport of America's wars in Pakistan and Afghanistan. While other politicianshave publicly condemned U.S. action in Pakistan, WikiLeaks cables demonstratethat they tend to speak more approvingly to U.S. officials in private. Incontrast, Khan seems to have delivered the samemessage to the street and the State Department.

At the heart of PTI's sudden rise is the confluence of an effective narrative,a charismatic and credible evangelist, and fortuitous timing. As Pakistan'sties with the United States have worsened, so have problems with its economyand government. The consumer price index is close to the teens, putting greatstrain on the average Pakistani's finances. The state-owned airlines, railways,and steel mills bleed billions of dollars a year. Prolonged electricityblackouts have continued for their sixth straight year, hammering localindustries.

To fix all this, Khan promises to make Pakistan an "Islamic welfare state"where the government promotes justice and equity, is devoid of corruption, andoffers social services to the poor. Pakistan, Khan says, should emulatenon-Western economic success stories, such as Mahathir Mohammed's Malaysia, LeeKuan Yew's Singapore, and Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Turkey.

For his supporters, Khan is a symbol of what can go right in a country that hasseen so much wrong. And he is seen as a leader who has promised victory whenthe odds were against him and has regularly come through in the clutch. WhenKhan announced his plans to build a cancer hospital, it was dismissed as "unworkableidea," according to Pakistani commentator Tariq Bashir. But "like ImranKhan's cricketing career," Bashir writes, the institution has become a "surprisingsuccess stor[y]."

With anti-incumbent sentiment running high as voters blame the country's twolargest parties for the ugly status quo, Khan is the perfect candidate forPakistanis sick of the usual suspects or skeptical about whether democracy evenworks for Pakistan. The two major parties are seen by many as having beentried, tested, and failed. The PPP rules at the center, while the PML-N runsPunjab, the largest province. Each has had two previous shots at running thecountry since 1988.

PTI has shaken up Pakistani politics. Since the Lahore rally, PTI's rivals havetried to emulate the party's use of social media, youth outreach, and even themusical interludes during speeches. Some reports even claimthat the PTI challenge has forced the country's two major parties to repositionand mutually obstruct Khan's advance.

Meanwhile, droves of electable politicians, including three former foreignministers, have defected from Pakistan's major political parties to join the PTI.The new entrants include many members of the previous army-backed governmentunder Musharraf, causing the PTI central vice president to resign in protest.

Khan says he can't find angels to join PTI. He's right. For years he soughtunsuccessfully to build the party from the bottom up. When he founded hisparty, he pledgedto bring in a new class of politician to supplant the "predatory" politicianswho have "sieged" Pakistan's system.

But Pakistani voters tend to be pragmatic rent-seekers, siding with thecandidate they feel will most effectively channel state resources their way. Khanneeds politicians with a track record of winning. The party also benefits fromthe experience brought by an influx of established politicians, who can helpadd depth to the party's policy agenda.

And yet, however necessary, PTI's recruitment of established politicianschallenges its claim that it is in pursuit of tabdeeli, or change. It will have to leverage Khan's leadership andclean image to counterbalance the growing perception that it is old wine in anew bottle. If PTI fails to do so, it will find it difficult to hold on toyoung and upper-middle class supporters, traditional non-voters who see Khan astheir favorite anti-politician politician.

In the coming weeks and months, PTI will develop its election manifesto. Thiswill be an opportunity for Khan and company to explain how they will addressPakistan's structural weaknesses. PTI will have to articulate its plans toincrease government revenue and reduce federal debt, salvage sinkinggovernment-owned corporations, lower dependence on natural gas and increase theefficiency of the electricity grid, attract foreign direct investment and boostdomestic economic growth, deal with militants who do not lay down their armsand continue their war against the state, and find a place for Pakistan in arising Asia -- beyond making endearing platitudes to China.

None of Pakistan's problems can be solved overnight. They require not just boldleadership, but quiet skills developed with political experience, such as theability to assemble coalitions and build consensus. As much as Khan railsagainst the system, in the event PTI leads the next governing coalition, hewill need allies in the bureaucracy, military, and parliament to push hisagenda through. Democracy skeptics and politicians who have jumped on the PTI bandwagoncould leave as quickly they have joined. And Khan's political opponents mightlack the capability or will to solve Pakistan's problems, but they arecertainly able to prevent him from doing so.

Imran Khan describes his party's rise as a "tsunami" engulfing the nation'spolitics. For the first time, PTI will likely have the numbers to influencegovernment policy after elections are held sometime this year. With politicalsuccess comes great responsibility. If Khan and PTI fail to rise to thechallenge, their tsunami will be nothing but a natural disaster.

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/01/12/the_imran_khan_phenomenon?page=full

Pakistan court ups pressure on govt over Zardari graft cases

2012-01-11T08:17:00.000-08:00

By Qasim Nauman

ISLAMABAD | Tue Jan 10, 2012 7:29pm IST

(Reuters) - Pakistan's Supreme Court turned up the pressure on the civilian government on Tuesday by warning the prime minister he could be removed from office if he doesn't take action on longstanding corruption cases against the president.
The government, already feeling the heat from the military over what has become known as the "memogate" scandal, says President Asif Ali Zardari has immunity as head of state and has relied on that argument to fend off previous court orders.
Tuesday's order is the latest twist in a controversy dating back to 2007, when then-military President Pervez Musharraf agreed to an amnesty for thousands accused of corruption, murder and terrorism.
The 2007 amnesty, known as the National Reconciliation Ordinance, was widely seen as the basis for a power-sharing deal between Musharraf and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, assassinated in December 2007 after returning from self-imposed exile.
The Supreme Court threw out the amnesty in December 2009 on the grounds it was unconstitutional and called for the re-opening of corruption cases, with Zardari, Bhutto's widower, the biggest target.
Zardari's government, run by Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani, has dragged its feet since then, prompting Tuesday's ruling.
"It is quite clear to us now that the federal government and the National Accountability Bureau are not serious in the matter at all and those concerned are only interested in delaying and prolonging the matter on one pretext or another," the five-judge Supreme Court bench wrote in its order.
There is no immediate threat to the government, however. The court recessed until Jan 16, when it will reconvene to hear arguments from the attorney-general.
Tension meanwhile runs high between the civilian administration and Pakistan's powerful generals over "memogate".
Last October, businessman Mansoor Ijaz, writing in a column in the Financial Times, said a senior Pakistani diplomat had asked that a memo be sent to the U.S. Defense Department for help in reining in the military.
Ijaz later identified the diplomat as Husain Haqqani, Pakistan's former ambassador to the United States and an ally of Zardari. Haqqani denies involvement.
The Supreme Court ordered a judicial commission to investigate the scandal, which could lead to treason charges against Haqqani. If Zardari is also found to be linked to the memo, it could lead to his impeachment.
The government also faces challenges on the diplomatic front. Ties with the United States hit a low following a Nov 26 cross-border air strike by NATO that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.
Mistrust has grown since a unilateral U.S. special forces raid in May that killed Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil, infuriating the military, government and many Pakistanis.
(Writing by Chris Allbritton; Editing by Nick Macfie)

http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/01/10/pakistan-supremecourt-idINDEE8090EV20120110

Daily Brief: Pakistani PM sacks Defense Minister

2012-01-11T08:12:00.000-08:00

Crime and punishment

Pakistani Prime Minister Yusaf Raza Gilani relieved Lt. Gen. Naeem Khalid Lodhi of his duties as Defense Secretary on Wednesday, following Lodhi's statement to the Supreme Court last month in its investigation of the "Memogate" scandal that the Ministry of Defense has no control over the Army or the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate (ISI) (ET, AP, Dawn, Reuters). The Pakistani military's Directorate of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement on its website that Prime Minister Gilani's recent statements to a Chinese newspaper that the country's military leaders had violated the constitution are false and could have "very serious ramifications" (ET, Dawn). And on Tuesday, the lawyer for the former Pakistani ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani challenged the Supreme Court's legal authority to form a commission to investigate "Memogate" (AFP, Dawn).

Four suspected militants were killed Wednesday on the outskirts of Miran Shah in the first U.S. drone strike in Pakistan since the November 26 NATO airstrikes that hit a border check point, killing 24 Pakistani troops (AP, AFP, Reuters, Tel, NYT). Pakistani security forces killed a further 11 suspected militants in the tribal agency of Orakzai on Wednesday (Dawn). The Associated Press reported Wednesday that the United States gave a $36,607 grant in 2009 to Pakistan's Sunni Ittehad Council, which recently organized a rally in celebration of Mumtaz Qadri, who assassinated the opinionated liberal politician Salman Taseer last year (AP). A U.S. diplomat insisted that it was a one-time grant intended to support the group's organization of anti-Taliban rallies, and that no further funds will be given.

Pakistan's civilian leadership scrambled Tuesday to formulate a response to the Supreme Court's threat to dismiss Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani if he refuses to reopen a corruption case against President Asif Ali Zardari, and eventually decided to call an early session of parliament on January 12 (ET, Dawn). The leaders hope to find a solution to the political turmoil through inclusive negotiations, as Prime Minister Gilani has so far refused to fulfill the court's demands. A spokesman for the ISPR on Wednesday denied reports in a British tabloid, The Sun, that Pakistani authorities plan to demolish the compound in which Osama bin Laden was found and killed by the United States (ET).

http://afpak.foreignpolicy.com/dailybrief

2012-01-06T21:31:00.001-08:00

Brothers in arms?
South Asian News Agency
Both President Zardari and Mian Nawaz Sharif, however, have their own trust
problems and would like the interlocutor(s) to hammer out ironclad
guarantees before any such political settlement sees the light of day.
Stung by past broken promises, ...
<http://www.sananews.net/english/2012/01/brothers-in-arms/>
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The rally tally
The Friday Times
The president addressed his party supporters from behind bulletproof glass
at a rally marking the fourth barsi of his wife. It's the first time since
his return from Dubai that he's spoken to his subjects. I didn't make much
of the speech, ...
<http://www.thefridaytimes.com/beta2/tft/article.php?issue=20120106&page=13>
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Cooperation is only way forward: Tharoor
The News International
Tharoor welcomed the fact that President Zardari had been pushing for trade
links with India, because it reflected how important it was for Pakistan to
normalise relations with India. However, he said that the civilian
initiatives by Pakistan were ...
<http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=86100&Cat=2>
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Pagara taken to London by air ambulance
DAWN.com
The PPP leaders told reporters that President Asif Ali Zardari was in touch
with sons of Pir Pagara and had offered government`s assistance. At the top
of the dialog box, select the GENERAL tab. In the HOME PAGE text box, type
http://www.dawn.com, ...
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Giles Clarke praises progress made by Pakistan chairman Zaka Ashraf
The Guardian
However, Butt's three-year term as chairman expired in October, and Clarke
has been encouraged by the early impact of Ashraf, a former banker with no
cricketing background – even if his appointment by the Pakistan president
Asif Ali Zardari, ...
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/jan/05/giles-clarke-pakistan-zaka-ashraf?newsfeed=true>
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US senators extend support to Haqqani
The Nation, Pakistan
In a related development, sources said the former ambassador's wife and
presidential spokesperson Farahnaz Ispahani who had accompanied president
Zardari during his treatment in Dubai, had proceeded to Washington to
muster support for her beleaguered ...
<http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/international/06-Jan-2012/us-senators-extend-support-to-haqqani>
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2012-01-04T01:06:00.001-08:00

Enter the year of the Taliban By M K Bhadrakumar No matter what the Chinese may say about 2012 being the year of the dragon, this is going to be the year of the Taliban so far as the United States is concerned.

The New Year began with an exciting media "leak" by senior United States officials in Washington that the Barack Obama administration was considering the transfer to Afghan custody of a senior Taliban official, Mullah Mohammed Fazl, who has been detained at the US facility at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba for the past nine years.

The officials claimed Fazl might be released (or transferred to Qatar) in response to a longstanding request by Kabul as a "confidence-building measure" intended to underscore to the Taliban the US's seriousness in engaging them.

To be sure, the Obama administration is raring to go. Just about four months are left for the summit meeting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Chicago, an event showcasing Obama's leadership of the Western alliance - and that he can lead from the front - embedded within his unpredictable re-election bid. The summit is expected to focus world attention on the Afghan situation.

With the Europeans caught in existential angst due to their grave economic crisis, Obama needs to use all his charm on his NATO colleagues not to ditch him in Afghanistan. For that, he needs to convince them that he is leading them to the end of the dark tunnel. The Chicago summit cannot afford to fail, as happened with the two events leading to it - the Istanbul meet on November 2 and the Bonn Conference II on December 2.

But the mood in the region surrounding Afghanistan is turning ugly.

Moscow has dealt a devastating blow to the game plan drawn up by the US and NATO secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen eyeing Central Asia tactically as the backyard for Afghan operations if push comes to shove in the US's relations with Pakistan - and strategically as a platform for the great game toward Russia, China and Iran.

In a geopolitical coup, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit in Moscow on December 20 took a momentous decision that for the setting up of foreign military bases on CSTO territory, there had to be approval by all member states of the Moscow-led alliance that also includes Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Kazakhstan President Nurusultan Nazarbayev announced with a straight face:

The most important outcome of our meeting was an agreement on the coordination of military infrastructure deployment by non-members of CSTO on the territory of CSTO member states. Now, in order to deploy a military base of a third country on the territory of a CST.O member state, it will be necessary to obtain official approval of all CSTO member states. I think this is a clear sign of the organization's unity and its members' utmost loyalty to allied relations

The last sentence was dripping with irony since the Obama administration had just recently taken a decision to provide military assistance to Uzbekistan in a policy turnaround with the intent to hijack the key Central Asian country to undermine the CSTO. To Washington's dismay, Uzbek President Islam Karimov not only attended the CSTO summit in Moscow, but went on to voice his support of the alliance's decision.

With this, Moscow signaled to Washington that its monopoly of conflict-resolution in Afghanistan has to end. The US has a choice to crawl back into Pakistan's favor and persuade Islamabad to reopen the transit routes that have been shut down for a month already or, alternatively, fall back on the Northern Distribution Network for supplying NATO troops and for taking the men and materials out as the troop drawdown picks momentum through 2011.

The CSTO decision hangs like a sword of Damocles on the US base in Manas near Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, which is a strategic hub for air transportation.

There is no evidence so far that Russia and Pakistan have begun acting in tandem - although, in his statement anticipating Russia's foreign policy priorities for 2012, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov did single out Pakistan.

As the crow flies ...

Amid all this, Fazl's possible release from Guantanamo comes as a masterstroke by Washington aimed at scattering the growing regional bonhomie over the Afghan situation. The Obama administration hopes to release a fox into the chicken pen. Fazl is one of the most experienced Taliban commanders who has been with Taliban leader Mullah Omar almost from day one and he held key positions commanding the Taliban army.

He would have been a favorite of both Mullah Omar and Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and his "homecoming" ought to bring joy to both. On the other hand, he was also culpable for the massacre of thousands of Hazara Shi'ites during 1998-2001 and was possibly accountable for the execution of eight Iranian diplomats in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif.

Fazl inspires visceral hatred in the Iranian mind and could create misunderstandings in Pakistan-Iran relations (which have been on an upswing in recent years) and put Islamabad on the horns of a dilemma vis-a-vis Mullah Omar.

Fazl is also a notorious personality from the Central Asian and Russian viewpoint insofar as he used to be the Taliban's point person for al-Qaeda and its regional affiliates such as the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) and Chechen rebels. He was also in charge of the strategic Kunduz region bordering the "soft underbelly" of Central Asia where he was based with IMU chief Juma Namangani at the time of the US intervention in October 2011.

Fazl belongs to the "pre-Haqqani clan" era. Will the Haqqani network - a key component of the Taliban-led insurgency from its base in Pakistan's tribal areas - accept Fazl's "seniority" and give way to him? Pakistan may have to prioritize its "strategic assets"; it is a veritable minefield.

Enter Qatar, which is increasingly emerging as the US's closest ally in the Middle East next only to Israel. The Obama administration feels impressed by the skill Qatar displayed in theaters as diverse as Libya, Egypt and Syria in finessing the Muslim Brotherhood and other seemingly intractable Islamist groups and helping the US to catap ult itself to the "right side of history" in the Middle East.

The Obama administration is optimistic that if Fazl could be left to able Qatari hands, he could be recycled as an Islamist politician for a democratic era.

Fazl does have the credentials to bring Mullah Omar on board for launching formal peace talks. Fazl enjoys credibility among the Taliban militia and they would be inclined to emulate his reincarnation. His bonding with Islamist forces in Pakistan and the ISI could be useful channels of communication with Islamabad, which will come under pressure to cooperate with the US-led peace talks, or at the very least refrain from undercutting them.

Indeed, he is the perfect antidote to Iran's influence in Afghanistan. Once Qatar is through with him, Fazl becomes just the right partner for Washington in the great game if the Arab Spring were to appear in Central Asia, holding prospects of regime change and the rise of "Islamic democracies" in the steppes. Fazl can be trusted to persuade Taliban not to make such a terrible issue out of the US plans to establish military bases in Afghanistan.

However, will the plan work?

Pakistan may have fired the first salvo of the New Year to demolish the US plan when Foreign Ministry spokesman Abdul Basit said in Islamabad on Monday:

Establishing sustainable security and stability in Afghanistan is impossible without Iran's role. To establish security and reinvigorate Afghanistan, Iran must be given due attention and must be trusted, because pushing the trend of peace and establishing durable security and stability without Iran's partnership is impossible.

Basit was speaking within earshot of the whirring sound of the Iranian cruise missile with the ferocious name Qader (Mighty) fired from an undisclosed location unambiguously demonstrating Tehran's capability to enforce a blockade of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
An accomplished diplomat, he certainly knows Doha lies just 547 kilometers away as the flies from the Strait of Hormuz. Fazl won't be safe in Doha.

Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar was a career diplomat in the Indian Foreign Service. His assignments included the Soviet Union, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kuwait and Turkey.

Pakistan to analyze 178,000 bin Laden's documents - Xinhua | English.news.cn

2012-01-03T22:24:00.001-08:00

Pakistan to analyze 178,000 bin Laden's documents - Xinhua | English.news.cn

2012-01-03T22:24:00.000-08:00

Pakistan to analyze 178,000 bin Laden's documents - Xinhua | English.news.cn

Pakistan, US assume less cooperation in future

2012-01-03T22:12:00.000-08:00

Pakistan, US assume less cooperation in future

Be Part of Challenge of Change in Pakistan

2011-12-28T12:02:00.000-08:00

Good Governance Forum, founded in March 2007 as Pakistan's First and Only Interactive Think Tank on Governance, has the unique distinction of launching the first-ever online campaign through emailing, blogging and posting comments on international media including The Washington Post, The New York Times, USAToday against the dictatorship of then President Pervez Musharraf.

Good Governance Forum has the unique distinction of being invited to the United Nations' MDG Summit in New York in 2010 as delegate and speaker on the world forum.

Good Governance Forum has the unique distinction of being registered from Pakistan as a civil society organization by the Dept of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations.

Good Governance Forum has the unique distinction of being the first and only think tank in Pakistan to file petitions in the Supreme Court of Pakistan and the High Courts on major national issues for relief to the people of Pakistan.

Good Governance Forum categorizes its supporters into Patrons, Advisers and Contributors. These are defined as under:

Patrons: Citizens who donate Rs 50,000 and above in a year.

Advisers: Citizens who provide their professional expertise on specific subjects without charge to the forum.

Contributors: Citizens who donate Rs 5,000 and above but less than Rs 50,000 in a year.

Patrons and Advisers can carry their titles on their visiting cards and represent the forum on specific platforms in and out of Pakistan with prior approval of the Chairman of the Good Governance Forum.

Patrons and Advisers can avail the resources of the Good Governance Forum for pleading any issue at any public forum or at the level of the federal or any of the provincial governments relating to themselves, their organizations or general public.

Contributors can avail the Forum's data bank on specific issues for their writings or participation in the issue-related public debates.

Good Governance Forum plans to nominate ladies and gentlemen from amongst its Patrons, Advisers and Contributors to work with major political parties, NGOs and government departments to help improve governance in the country.

Good Governance Forum comprises 3000+ members from almost all walks of life including the business community, civil services, diplomats, educationists, military, news agencies, NGOs, politicians, print and electronic media, professionals.

For further details, please visit http://ggovernance.blogspot.com or email to good.governance@gmail.com.

100 Women Who Shake Pakistan

2011-12-17T04:14:00.000-08:00

100 Women Who Shake Pakistan

Despite Crises, Pakistan Is the Bravest Nation - The Daily Beast

2011-12-17T04:11:00.000-08:00

Despite Crises, Pakistan Is the Bravest Nation - The Daily Beast

The Peril Of Pakistan

2011-12-17T04:06:00.000-08:00

The Peril Of Pakistan

Death wish of the Pakistani political class - Ayaz Amir

2011-12-16T21:05:00.000-08:00

Death wish of the Pakistani political class - Ayaz Amir

Why the Pakistani army is bolstering opposition to its most important alliance? | The Best Defense

2011-12-14T20:47:00.000-08:00

Why the Pakistani army is bolstering opposition to its most important alliance? | The Best Defense

Pakistan President Zardari Stable After Dubai Hospital Tests - Businessweek

2011-12-07T06:33:00.000-08:00

Pakistan President Zardari Stable After Dubai Hospital Tests - Businessweek

Rumors of 'silent coup' as Pakistan President Zardari heads to hospital - CSMonitor.com

2011-12-07T06:32:00.000-08:00

Rumors of 'silent coup' as Pakistan President Zardari heads to hospital - CSMonitor.com

Dissecting a ‘leak’

2011-11-12T21:44:00.000-08:00

Dissecting a ‘leak’

Senator: Consider military action against Pakistan - Yahoo! News

2011-09-25T10:26:00.000-07:00

Senator: Consider military action against Pakistan - Yahoo! News

Pakistan Says Adequate Reserves Reduce Need for New IMF Loan - Bloomberg

2011-09-24T01:21:00.000-07:00

Pakistan Says Adequate Reserves Reduce Need for New IMF Loan - Bloomberg

Asian Currencies Have Worst Week Since 1998 on Concern Over Global Economy - Bloomberg

2011-09-24T01:15:00.000-07:00

Asian Currencies Have Worst Week Since 1998 on Concern Over Global Economy - Bloomberg

Afghan Assassination Threatens Talks With Taliban, U.S.-Pakistan Relations - Bloomberg

2011-09-24T01:13:00.000-07:00

Afghan Assassination Threatens Talks With Taliban, U.S.-Pakistan Relations - Bloomberg

2011-09-24T01:12:00.001-07:00

Afghan Assassination Threatens Talks With Taliban, U.S.-Pakistan Relations - Bloomberg

2011-09-24T01:12:00.000-07:00

Afghan Assassination Threatens Talks With Taliban, U.S.-Pakistan Relations - Bloomberg

Alex Jones: Osama was CIA asset, killed years ago — RT

2011-09-24T01:07:00.000-07:00

Alex Jones: Osama was CIA asset, killed years ago — RT

Drones killed hundreds of civilians in Pakistan — RT

2011-09-24T01:06:00.000-07:00

Drones killed hundreds of civilians in Pakistan — RT

Violence, arrogance and double game strain US-Pakistan relations — RT

2011-09-24T01:05:00.000-07:00

Violence, arrogance and double game strain US-Pakistan relations — RT

CJ Iftikhar says, 'All will end if courts' functioning sabotaged' - PakTribune

2011-09-16T00:03:00.000-07:00

CJ Iftikhar says, 'All will end if courts' functioning sabotaged' - PakTribune

Pakistan: a hardy country | Opinion | DAWN.COM

2011-07-28T00:41:00.000-07:00

Pakistan: a hardy country | Opinion | DAWN.COM

490 fell prey to target killings in six months: HRCP

2011-07-07T14:11:00.000-07:00

490 fell prey to target killings in six months: HRCP

Mullen Claims Islamabad 'Sanctioned' Journalist's Killing - Yochi J. Dreazen - NationalJournal.com

2011-07-07T12:04:00.000-07:00

Mullen Claims Islamabad 'Sanctioned' Journalist's Killing - Yochi J. Dreazen - NationalJournal.com

The WikiLeaks You Missed - By Joshua E. Keating | Foreign Policy

2011-07-04T04:59:00.000-07:00

The WikiLeaks You Missed - By Joshua E. Keating | Foreign Policy

Pakistan: Conflict Profile | Insight on Conflict

2011-06-27T07:54:00.000-07:00

Pakistan: Conflict Profile | Insight on Conflict

With Afghan withdrawal, U.S. focus turns to Pakistan - Washington Times

2011-06-25T21:40:00.000-07:00

With Afghan withdrawal, U.S. focus turns to Pakistan - Washington Times

Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan - EDITORIAL: Internal purge

2011-06-25T03:23:00.000-07:00

Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan - EDITORIAL: Internal purge

BBC News - Brigadier Ali Khan: Pakistan's dissenting army officer

2011-06-25T03:20:00.000-07:00

BBC News - Brigadier Ali Khan: Pakistan's dissenting army officer

Caliphate, reunification of Muslim world stressed | Pakistan | News | Newspaper | Daily | English | Online

2011-06-25T03:01:00.000-07:00

All problems emanating from poor governance: Piracha. - The Nation (Karachi, Pakistan) | HighBeam Research

2011-06-24T06:36:00.000-07:00

All problems emanating from poor governance: Piracha. - The Nation (Karachi, Pakistan) | HighBeam Research

U.S. Image in Pakistan Falls No Further Following bin Laden Killing | Pew Global Attitudes Project

2011-06-22T22:59:00.000-07:00

U.S. Image in Pakistan Falls No Further Following bin Laden Killing | Pew Global Attitudes Project

End Corruption. Build Pakistan: Good Governance Forum--UN Foundation Campaign

2011-06-22T10:53:00.000-07:00

End Corruption. Build Pakistan
http://www.causes.com/causes/621312-end-corruption-build-pakistan

Eliminating The Roots Of Terrorism In Pakistan

2011-06-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

Eliminating The Roots Of Terrorism In Pakistan

Kayani fights to keep army chief's job: NYT | Deccan Chronicle

2011-06-17T10:57:00.000-07:00

Kayani fights to keep army chief's job: NYT | Deccan Chronicle

US-Pak Counter-Terrorism Cooperation: The Ritual & the Reality

2011-06-12T10:40:00.000-07:00

US-Pak Counter-Terrorism Cooperation: The Ritual & the Reality

Balochistan: Greater Realism in China and Iran

2011-06-12T10:37:00.000-07:00

Balochistan: Greater Realism in China and Iran

Sharif Family

2011-06-07T12:06:00.000-07:00

Sharif Family

Journalists Killed in Pakistan - Committee to Protect Journalists

2011-06-04T00:39:00.000-07:00

Journalists Killed in Pakistan - Committee to Protect Journalists

The US is Losing Pakistan | The Diplomat

2011-06-03T07:02:00.000-07:00

The US is Losing Pakistan | The Diplomat

2011-06-03T01:11:00.000-07:00

Pakistan Leaders Must Make Choice After Clinton's Warning
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-02/pakistan-leaders-must-make-choice-after-clinton-s-warning-view.html

Full: Pakistan to launch offensive against Haqqani Network in North Waziristan - The National

2011-06-01T04:35:00.000-07:00

Full: Pakistan to launch offensive against Haqqani Network in North Waziristan - The National

ISAF spokesman bungles Haqqani Network's relationship with the Taliban - Threat Matrix

2011-06-01T04:30:00.000-07:00

ISAF spokesman bungles Haqqani Network's relationship with the Taliban - Threat Matrix

Q+A: Haqqani: From White House guest to staunch U.S. enemy | Reuters

2011-06-01T04:19:00.001-07:00

Q+A: Haqqani: From White House guest to staunch U.S. enemy | Reuters

2011-06-01T04:19:00.000-07:00

Q+A: Haqqani: From White House guest to staunch U.S. enemy | Reuters

Haqqani network: ISI's friend, America's foe - Rediff.com News

2011-06-01T04:06:00.000-07:00

Haqqani network: ISI's friend, America's foe - Rediff.com News

Haqqani insurgent group proves resilient foe in Afghan war - The Washington Post

2011-06-01T04:02:00.000-07:00

Haqqani insurgent group proves resilient foe in Afghan war - The Washington Post

Haqqani: From White House guest to staunch U.S. enemy - Yahoo! News

2011-06-01T03:47:00.000-07:00

Haqqani: From White House guest to staunch U.S. enemy - Yahoo! News

Pakistan trims US military mission - World news - South and Central Asia - Pakistan - msnbc.com

2011-06-01T03:38:00.000-07:00

Pakistan trims US military mission - World news - South and Central Asia - Pakistan - msnbc.com

Pakistan media ridicules military after attack | Reuters

2011-06-01T03:32:00.000-07:00

Pakistan media ridicules military after attack | Reuters

2011-06-01T03:24:00.000-07:00

Pakistan media ridicules military after attack | Reuters

Naval base attack weakens Pakistan's counter-terror surveillance | Reuters

2011-06-01T03:23:00.000-07:00

Naval base attack weakens Pakistan's counter-terror surveillance | Reuters

U.S. Pressures Pakistan to Go After Ayman Zawahiri and Other Militant Leaders - ABC News

2011-05-30T02:59:00.000-07:00

U.S. Pressures Pakistan to Go After Ayman Zawahiri and Other Militant Leaders - ABC News

Post court blow, calls for Zardari to go

2011-05-30T02:55:00.000-07:00

Post court blow, calls for Zardari to go

Post-Bin Laden: US, UK shore up support for Pakistan

2011-05-30T02:35:00.000-07:00

Post-Bin Laden: US, UK shore up support for Pakistan

US behind PNS Mehran attack, says Nawaz Sharif

2011-05-30T02:30:00.000-07:00

US behind PNS Mehran attack, says Nawaz Sharif

Musharraf: Obama is arrogant - CNN.com

2011-05-28T09:57:00.000-07:00

Musharraf: Obama is arrogant - CNN.com

At tense time for US-Pakistan ties, Hillary Clinton swings velvet hammer - Yahoo! News

2011-05-27T19:48:00.000-07:00

At tense time for US-Pakistan ties, Hillary Clinton swings velvet hammer - Yahoo! News

All problems emanating from poor governance: Piracha. - The Nation (Karachi, Pakistan) | HighBeam Research

2011-05-26T06:38:00.000-07:00

All problems emanating from poor governance: Piracha. - The Nation (Karachi, Pakistan) HighBeam Research

Hillary expected to visit Pakistan in a few days: Munter

2011-05-26T02:48:00.000-07:00

Hillary expected to visit Pakistan in a few days: Munter

U.S. Support for Pakistan: A Long Messy History : The New Yorker

2011-05-25T11:58:00.000-07:00

U.S. Support for Pakistan: A Long Messy History : The New Yorker

2011-05-25T11:57:00.000-07:00

U.S. Support for Pakistan: A Long Messy History : The New Yorker

Dilip Hiro: Playing the China Card: Has the Obama Administration Miscalculated in Pakistan?

2011-05-25T11:49:00.000-07:00

Dilip Hiro: Playing the China Card: Has the Obama Administration Miscalculated in Pakistan?

Did Osama really die here? | Al Jazeera Blogs

2011-05-24T10:09:00.000-07:00

Did Osama really die here? | Al Jazeera Blogs

Between Osama, the US and Pakistan | Al Jazeera Blogs

2011-05-24T10:08:00.000-07:00

Between Osama, the US and Pakistan | Al Jazeera Blogs

The Osama I remember | Al Jazeera Blogs

2011-05-24T10:05:00.001-07:00

The Osama I remember | Al Jazeera Blogs

Who In Pakistan knew Osama was there? | Al Jazeera Blogs

2011-05-24T10:05:00.000-07:00

Who In Pakistan knew Osama was there? | Al Jazeera Blogs

US-Pakistan relations and bin Laden's demise - Opinion - Al Jazeera English

2011-05-24T10:02:00.000-07:00

US-Pakistan relations and bin Laden's demise - Opinion - Al Jazeera English

“Pakistan has hard choices to make”: Clinton

2011-05-24T05:56:00.000-07:00

“Pakistan has hard choices to make”: Clinton

Pervez Musharraf: Latest News, Photos and Videos

2011-05-24T04:32:00.000-07:00

Pervez Musharraf: Latest News, Photos and Videos

Did General Kayani and Pasha give shelter to Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad?

2011-05-23T09:51:00.000-07:00

Did General Kayani and Pasha give shelter to Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad?

China: All the way with Pakistan

2011-05-23T09:47:00.000-07:00

China: All the way with Pakistan

CFR.org - A Low in Cycle of U.S.-Pakistan Ties

2011-05-23T09:33:00.000-07:00

CFR.org - A Low in Cycle of U.S.-Pakistan Ties

Foreign Embassies and Consulates in Pakistan

2011-05-23T04:17:00.001-07:00

Foreign Embassies and Consulates in Pakistan

2011-05-23T04:17:00.000-07:00

Foreign Embassies and Consulates in Pakistan

US seeks to redefine ties by sending Clinton

2011-05-22T12:36:00.000-07:00

US seeks to redefine ties by sending Clinton

WikiLeaks Pakistan: Leaks Ahoy!

2011-05-20T07:51:00.000-07:00

WikiLeaks Pakistan: Leaks Ahoy!

Army not happy, Kayani tells Kerry

2011-05-16T03:52:00.000-07:00

Army not happy, Kayani tells Kerry

Pakistan’s bin Laden Scapegoat

2011-05-09T03:38:00.000-07:00

Pakistan’s bin Laden Scapegoat

ISI chief leaves for unknown destination - Hindustan Times

2011-05-08T03:00:00.000-07:00

ISI chief leaves for unknown destination - Hindustan Times

- South Asian Pulse

2011-05-07T22:15:00.000-07:00

- South Asian Pulse

Oxford ban on Bilawal to end in Sept

2011-05-07T07:46:00.000-07:00

Oxford ban on Bilawal to end in Sept

Army top brass blames civilians

2011-05-07T07:44:00.000-07:00

Army top brass blames civilians

US tells Pakistan to name names of ISI agents

2011-05-07T07:30:00.000-07:00

US tells Pakistan to name names of ISI agents

Pakistan Military Knew About Bin Laden Raid Well In Advance Of Attack

2011-05-07T06:51:00.003-07:00

http://blogs.forbes.com/rickungar/2011/05/06/pakistan-military-knew-about-bin-laden-raid-well-in-advance-of-attack/

Navy Seals in Action

2011-05-06T02:19:00.000-07:00

Navy Seals in Action

Gawking at Osama Bin Laden's Compound

2011-05-06T02:17:00.000-07:00

Gawking at Osama Bin Laden's Compound

Canine of the Year: Military Dog Reportedly Assisted in bin Laden�Raid

2011-05-06T02:14:00.000-07:00

Canine of the Year: Military Dog Reportedly Assisted in bin Laden�Raid

Al-Qaeda's Big Postbin Laden Cash Crunch

2011-05-04T02:36:00.000-07:00

Al-Qaeda's Big Postbin Laden Cash Crunch

On Scene in Abbottabad at bin Laden's Last Stand

2011-05-04T02:34:00.000-07:00

On Scene in Abbottabad at bin Laden's Last Stand

The bin Laden Raid: Pakistan Feels the Heat of U.S. Mistrust

2011-05-04T02:33:00.000-07:00

The bin Laden Raid: Pakistan Feels the Heat of U.S. Mistrust

Inside the Osama bin Laden Strike: How America Got Its Man

2011-05-04T02:29:00.000-07:00

Inside the Osama bin Laden Strike: How America Got Its Man