In what could prove helpful in improving relations between US and Pakistan, American Admiral Willam McRaven has said Pakistan did not know the whereabouts of Al Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden before the US raid.

Islamabad / NationalTurk – As head of the US Special Operations Command, Admiral McRaven personally supervised the May 1 raid on OBL’s compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan led to killing of reclusive Al Qaeda chief.

A report by the American Forces Press Service quoted Admiral McRaven as telling a meeting in Washington that he believed informing Pakistan about the raid in advance would have put the mission at risk.

“I also believe that the Pakistani government did not know Bin Laden’s whereabouts. We have no intelligence that indicates the Pakistanis knew he was there,” he said.

McRaven said there was never a moment he doubted the raid would succeed. “We hand-picked the guys. They were the best of the best, all across the board. They had extensive combat experience, and consequently… I was very confident.”

Admiral McRaven said the US relationship with that country was improving. “I think it’s improving. We obviously went through a rough spell, but we have — it’s a complicated relationship with Pakistan, but it’s a good relationship. It is getting stronger, and I think we need to try and make it stronger”.

When asked why Pakistan was not informed on Bin Laden raid, he said, “We didn’t trust them because we didn’t share the mission with them.”

He, however, warned that Osama’s death had not ended terrorism. “Though Bin Laden was dead, non-state actors still presented a threat,” he added.

Faiz Ahmad / NationalTurk Asia News

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