WASHINGTON: Pakistan, exposed before the world for secretively or unwittingly hosting Osama bin Laden, is now squarely in the crosshairs of some American lawmakers and officials even as the broader US administration is struggling to stave off confrontation with its belligerent one-time ally.
Anger is running deep in Washington at what is being seen as Pakistan's perfidy of milking US aid while nurturing terrorists. On Wednesday, one lawmaker announced that he is introducing legislation that will prohibit any foreign aid from being sent to Pakistan "until it can demonstrate that it had no knowledge of Osama Bin Laden's whereabouts."
The legislation would require the state department to certify to Congress that Pakistan was not providing a sanctuary for the world's most wanted terrorist.
"Pakistan has a lot of explaining to do. It seems unimaginable that Osama bin Laden was living 1,000 yards away from a military base in a million dollar mansion built especially for him and no one in the Pakistani government knew about it. I don't buy it," Texas Congressman Ted Poe, who is introducing the legislation, said, even as the Obama administration wrestled with how to handle the Pakistan situation.
Islamabad did not help its own cause with statements condemning US incursion even though it is home to terrorists who wreak havoc worldwide and says it has no control over its own territories. Public rallies in Pakistan in support of bin Laden while the rest of the world seemed satisfied with his elimination added to further US doubts about the country.
"Congress has already appropriated $3 billion to Pakistan for this year. Unless the state department can certify to Congress that Pakistan was not harboring America's number one enemy, Pakistan should not receive one more cent of American aid," Poe said in statement whose sentiment is being echoed by many lawmakers.
Even administration officials are reportedly irked by Islamabad's intransigence that includes asking the world to share the blame for its failure to corral terrorists. But with more new information dribbling about showing how much of a free run terrorists are having in Pakistan, the country's woes are far from over.
Canada's Globe and Mail reported on Wednesday that the Abbottabad compound where bin Laden was cornered by US forces was being used by the Hizbul Mujaheddin, a terrorist group sponsored by Pakistan that operates in Kashmir.
Pakistani officials, the paper said, had summoned a meeting of patwaris (land registry officials) in the area to urge them to keep quiet about the HM connection. "If the ownership were traced to HM, it would mark an unusual example of co-operation between the militant group and its more extreme cousin, al-Qaida. HM has maintained a narrow focus on removing Indian forces from Kashmir, while al-Qaida pursues global ambitions," the paper said.
In the days since the US commando action in Abbottabad, Pakistan has not only been pilloried by officials and lawmakers but also ruthlessly skewered by comedians and late night talk show hosts whose popular following far exceed cable news casts in America.
Still, even in this bleak scenario, the country some have dubbed as "Terroristan" found a few supporters and apologists batting for it, mainly on account of its possession of nuclear weapons, the access it holds to US passage to Afghanistan, and its own parlous situation.
Those who advised the administration against punishing Pakistan are either liberals (such as John Kerry and Jimmy Carter) who fear the country collapsing, or conservative Cold War veterans with a long association with the country (like Donald Rumsfeld and Henry Kissinger). They are arguing that cutting off aid and isolating Pakistan will aggravate the problem.
US lawmaker to move bill to stop aid to Pakistan - The Times of India
Anger is running deep in Washington at what is being seen as Pakistan's perfidy of milking US aid while nurturing terrorists. On Wednesday, one lawmaker announced that he is introducing legislation that will prohibit any foreign aid from being sent to Pakistan "until it can demonstrate that it had no knowledge of Osama Bin Laden's whereabouts."
The legislation would require the state department to certify to Congress that Pakistan was not providing a sanctuary for the world's most wanted terrorist.
"Pakistan has a lot of explaining to do. It seems unimaginable that Osama bin Laden was living 1,000 yards away from a military base in a million dollar mansion built especially for him and no one in the Pakistani government knew about it. I don't buy it," Texas Congressman Ted Poe, who is introducing the legislation, said, even as the Obama administration wrestled with how to handle the Pakistan situation.
Islamabad did not help its own cause with statements condemning US incursion even though it is home to terrorists who wreak havoc worldwide and says it has no control over its own territories. Public rallies in Pakistan in support of bin Laden while the rest of the world seemed satisfied with his elimination added to further US doubts about the country.
"Congress has already appropriated $3 billion to Pakistan for this year. Unless the state department can certify to Congress that Pakistan was not harboring America's number one enemy, Pakistan should not receive one more cent of American aid," Poe said in statement whose sentiment is being echoed by many lawmakers.
Even administration officials are reportedly irked by Islamabad's intransigence that includes asking the world to share the blame for its failure to corral terrorists. But with more new information dribbling about showing how much of a free run terrorists are having in Pakistan, the country's woes are far from over.
Canada's Globe and Mail reported on Wednesday that the Abbottabad compound where bin Laden was cornered by US forces was being used by the Hizbul Mujaheddin, a terrorist group sponsored by Pakistan that operates in Kashmir.
Pakistani officials, the paper said, had summoned a meeting of patwaris (land registry officials) in the area to urge them to keep quiet about the HM connection. "If the ownership were traced to HM, it would mark an unusual example of co-operation between the militant group and its more extreme cousin, al-Qaida. HM has maintained a narrow focus on removing Indian forces from Kashmir, while al-Qaida pursues global ambitions," the paper said.
In the days since the US commando action in Abbottabad, Pakistan has not only been pilloried by officials and lawmakers but also ruthlessly skewered by comedians and late night talk show hosts whose popular following far exceed cable news casts in America.
Still, even in this bleak scenario, the country some have dubbed as "Terroristan" found a few supporters and apologists batting for it, mainly on account of its possession of nuclear weapons, the access it holds to US passage to Afghanistan, and its own parlous situation.
Those who advised the administration against punishing Pakistan are either liberals (such as John Kerry and Jimmy Carter) who fear the country collapsing, or conservative Cold War veterans with a long association with the country (like Donald Rumsfeld and Henry Kissinger). They are arguing that cutting off aid and isolating Pakistan will aggravate the problem.
US lawmaker to move bill to stop aid to Pakistan - The Times of India
