ISLAMABAD: Pakistan yesterday summoned the US Ambassador Richard Oslon in protest against what it said were “unsubstantiated” allegations in a US Department of Defence report about terrorist sanctuaries in Pakistan that operate against Afghanistan.
A foreign office spokesperson said Pakistan had taken serious exception to comments contained in the US Department of Defence report. The report, which was sent to Congress under the title “Progress Towards Security and Stability in Afghanistan”, gave the blunt assessment that terrorist groups continued to operate out of sanctuaries in Pakistan to commit attacks against Afghanistan and India.
“Pakistan’s protest over these unwarranted comments was conveyed by the Adviser to the Prime Minister on National Security and Foreign Affairs, Sartaj Aziz to the US Ambassador Richard Olson at the Foreign Ministry today”, the foreign office said in a statement.
“Such allegations are of particular concern at this point when Pakistan government has launched comprehensive operations against militants in North Waziristan”, the statement said.
Pakistan has been battling Islamist groups in its semi-autonomous tribal belt since 2004, after its army entered the region to search for Al Qaeda fighters who had fled across the border following the US-led invasion of Afghanistan.
In June the army began a long-awaited offensive against militant hideouts in the North Waziristan tribal area, after a bloody raid on Karachi Airport ended faltering peace talks between the government and the Taliban.
AFP
