Pakistan expels British counter-terrorism trainers

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Pakistan expels British counter-terrorism trainers

By Allbritton | Reuters – 9 hours ago

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan has told Britain to pull out some of its military

trainers, in what appears to be the latest sign of strained relations with the

West after last month's killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. troops.

Pakistan's military faces its most severe crisis in decades following the May 2

raid in which the al Qaeda leader was killed on Pakistani soil by foreign

soldiers.

" The UK has been asked to withdraw some of its training support teams on a

temporary basis by the Pakistani government in response to security concerns, "

British High Commission spokesman in Islamabad, Sheriff, told Reuters

Monday.

He said the Pakistan authorities had warned about " security concerns " but he did

not elaborate.

The British-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism quoted the British Defense

Ministry as confirming the withdrawal of at least 18 military advisers who were

helping train a poorly equipped paramilitary force, the Frontier Corps, in

counter-terrorism.

Since the May 2 raid, Pakistan has been keen to demonstrate its independence

from its Western sponsors and has also drastically scaled back the number of

military trainers from its main backer, the United States.

The number of U.S. trainers has been reduced to less than 50 from about 120,

Pakistani and American officials have said.

The reductions are a sign of a strained alliance that Washington still sees as

critical to its success in the war in neighboring Afghanistan as well as the

fight against al Qaeda and its affiliates.

The raid on bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, 30 miles northwest of Islamabad,

intensified U.S. questions about Pakistan's possible role in sheltering

militants.

The army still enjoys high approval ratings in Pakistan, but its critics blame

it for cultivating Islamist militants in the past for use against arch-rival

India, who are now increasingly slipping out of its control and turning on

Pakistani authorities.

Human rights groups have accused the Frontier Corps of abuses in Baluchistan

province, where a decades-long separatist insurgency is simmering.

Pakistani newspapers have reported at least 170 Baluch nationalists have

disappeared and five unarmed Chechens were shot to death in May at a checkpost

in the provincial capital, Quetta. The government says it is investigating.

The Bureau of Investigative Journalism reported that the British trainers had

been based near Quetta in Baluchistan at a British-funded base, working

alongside six American advisers training batches of 360 recruits in 12-week

courses.