Pakistan's ex-intelligence chief chides U.S.

May 12, 2011

Says U.S. should have shared information on Osama bin Laden

The Associated Press Posted: May 12, 2011 1:26 PM ET Last Updated: May 12, 2011

1:26 PM ET

Pakistan's former intelligence chief chided the U.S. on Thursday for not sharing

information about Osama bin Laden's whereabouts and challenged American

intelligence officials to name one time when co-operating led to a botched

operation.

Pakistan is facing ongoing pressure from inside the country and abroad to

explain why Pakistani intelligence didn't know that bin Laden was hiding in

their country and whether some Pakistani officials knew and protected him.

Speaking at a think-tank in Paris, Ret. Gen. Ehsan ul Haq, who headed the

Pakistani intelligence agency from late 2001 to 2004, said Pakistan has handed

over senior al-Qaida operatives, such as Khalid Sheikh Mohammed — the planner of

the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks — Abu Zubayda and Ramzi Binalshib.

Information obtained from the three helped develop a wealth of data about

al-Qaida, which ultimately led the U.S. to find bin Laden, Haq said.

He was pointedly asked how Pakistani officials couldn't have known bin Laden was

in the country.

" How is it possible that he was sitting there and nobody knew? Well, it is

possible, " Haq said. " For those who do intelligence work, they will tell you

that it's possible. "

Then he chided the U.S. for not sharing intelligence about bin Laden's

whereabouts.

" It should have been a joint operation, it would have been a success story, " Haq

said, adding that it would have strengthened co-operation between U.S. and

Pakistani intelligence officials instead of dampening relations.

In Abbottabad, a garrison town in northwest Pakistan where the May 2 raid by

U.S. Navy SEALs killed the leader of the al-Qaeda terror network, about 300

members of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's party rallied Thursday in the

main bazaar, denouncing both the American government for approving the raid and

Pakistani leaders.

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