Foreign Minister reacted strongly to Clinton's claim thatthe Al-Qaeda leader was in Pakistan
The Pakistani government has no information about the presence of al—Qaeda chief Ayman al—Zawahiri in the country, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar said today, hours after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Washington believes he is somewhere in Pakistan.
Khar made the remarks while briefing the Parliamentary Committee on National Security in Islamabad.
Clinton, who was in Kolkata, had said early today that U.S. believes Zawahiri is somewhere in Pakistan.
“We have no information about the presence of al—Qaeda leader Ayman al—Zawahiri in Pakistan,” Khar said.
If anybody has any information in this regard, they should share it with Pakistan, she said.
Clinton had said that Washington is “intent upon going after those who are trying to keep al—Qaeda operational and inspirational” and that it was in Islamabad's interest to pursue terrorists who are operating in Pakistani territory.
During her briefing for the parliamentary panel, Khar said U.S. drone attacks were counter—productive and a violation of Pakistan's sovereignty.
Talks are being held with the U.S. in the light of recommendations adopted by parliament for resetting bilateral relations, she said.
She said the U.S. has been informed of Pakistan's concerns about drone strikes.
In his remarks, Parliamentary Committee on National Security chairman Raza Rabbani said no compromise will be made on the country's sovereignty. - PTI
