Unsubstantiated Claims Made in New York Times Report

A report published in The New York Times claims not only that the Inter-Services Intelligence, Pakistan was aware of Osama bin Ladin’s presence in Pakistan, but also that Osama bin Ladin was wandering through different Pakistani cities in 2009, and his convoy faced no difficulty in passing through security check posts.

The report by American journalist Carlotta Gall, published in The New York Times, is a pack of lies. Gall has made claims but offered no proof. The chief of Pakistan’s Army at that time was America’s trusted friend, Pervez Musharraf. Musharraf had made Pakistan insecure by joining America’s war. Americans enjoyed viceroy status in Pakistan in Musharraf’s time. How is it possible that American intelligence would have no knowledge about Osama’s presence in Pakistan, but the news would reach Carlotta Gall?

Intelligence officials also have declared the report to be a fabrication and have contradicted it; Rashid Qureshi, who was the director general of Inter Services Public Relations at that time, has also said that there is no truth in the report.

An interesting assertion in the report is that proof has been secured of long lasting contacts between Osama and Hafiz Saeed from Osama bin Ladin’s Abbottabad house. If this is a verifiable accusation, then the evidence needs to be presented.