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A16 THE DESERT SUN SUNDAY, MAY 8, 2011 World Bin Laden raid sparks rare criticism in Pakistan KJW.CHAUDARV IHt ASSOCIAltD PRESS Supporters of Pakistani religious party Tanzeen-i-lslami hold a banner that reads "Pakistan should respond hard against the American operation inside its territory," during a rally Saturday in Lahore, Pakistan, to condemn the U. S. operation which killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. Placards on left and right criticize U.S. attacks using drone aircraft and calls for the resignation of government officials if the drone attacks are not stopped.

Many Pakistani citizens angry that raid was not stopped BY SEBASTIAN ABBOT AND ASIF SHAHZAD The Associated Press ISLAMABAD Outraged Pakistanis stepped up calls Saturday for top government officials to resign following the daring American helicopter raid that killed Osama bin Laden and embarrassed the nation. Some of the sharpest language was directed at the army and intelligence chiefs, a rare challenge to arguably the two most powerful men in the country, who are more accustomed to being feared than publicly criticized. The Pakistani army has said it had no idea bin Laden was hiding for up to six years in Abbottabad, an army town only two and a half hours' drive from the capital, Islamabad. That claim has met with skepticism from US. officials, who have repeatedly criticized Pakistan for failing to crack down on Islamist militants.

But with anti-American sentiment already high in the South Asian nation, many Pakistani citizens were more incensed by the fact that the country's military was powerless to stop the American raid. Some lawmakers and analysts expressed hope that civilian leaders can seize on this anger to chip away at the military's power, but others doubt that even an embarrassment of this scale will shake the status quo. "It was an attack on our soil, and the army was sleeping," said Zafar Iqbal, a 61 -year-old retired bureaucrat in the eastern city of Lahore. He singled out the leaders of Pakistan's army, air force and the main intelligence organization Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman and Gen.

Ahmed Shuja Pasha saying said Siddiqa. "It should go beyond this one event." Others held out little hope that Pakistan's civilian leaders have the skill and authority to take on die army, irrespective of die ripples from die bin Laden raid, Many of diem are viewed as corrupt and only looking out for dieir own self-interest. "Can we fix ourselves? Take a look around. Does anyone tfiink Asif Zardari has what it takes?" Cyril Almeida wrote on Friday in an editorial in Pakistan's leading English-language newspaper, Dawn. Zardari and Gilani met with the head of Pakistan's army, Kayani, and other senior officials in Islamabad on Saturday to discuss die bin Laden raid, said the prime minister's office.

Gilani plans to brief parliament about die raid on Monday. It is unclear where bin Laden was located before he moved to Abbottabad. Residents of Chak Shah Mohammad, a sparsely populated village close to Abbottabad, denied a report in die New York Times Saturday diat bin Laden had lived diere for two and a half years with his family before moving to Abbottabad. "I don't think the kind of people you and the intelligence agencies are looking for are here or have ever lived here," said Mohammad Shazad Awan, a former army soldier who has driven a public minibus in the area for die last 12 years. But residents of Abbottabad were also not aware that bin Laden had been living there for such a long time.

Awan, who said he works on the side as an informant for the government, said many Pakistani intelligence operatives were in Chak Shah Mohammad on Friday asking whether bin Laden had lived diere. A senior Pakistani intelligence official said he could neither confirm nor deny the report, which cited information from one of bin Laden's three wives who were detained after the raid. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with the agency's policy. denied reports that the ISI chief, Pasha, planned to resign in the wake of die bin Laden raid. U.S.

Navy SEALs swooped into Abbottabad by helicopter before dawn Monday, killed bin Laden and were on their way back to Afghanistan before the army could respond. The army has said it had no prior knowledge of the operation a claim backed up by the U.S. "No one other than die ISI and army chiefs are responsible for this disgrace of American attacks on our homeland," said Jaffar Ali, a 35-year-old bank employee in the soudiern city of Karachi. "It is a complete failure of our security." In contrast, former Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mah-mood Qureshi, a lawmaker for the ruling Pakistan People's Party, fixed the blame squarely on President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani likely motivated in part by past conflict with the two men. "This is a great violation of our sovereignty, but it is for the president and prime minister to resign and no one else," Qureshi told reporters Saturday in die central city of Lahore.

The main opposition leader in parliament, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, took a less selective approach. He said anyone from Zardari on down who can be faulted for what happened in Abbottabad should resign. "This is a call coming from every street of Pakistan," Khan told reporters in Lahore. Qureshi, the former foreign minister, said parliament should conduct a thorough inquiry into the raid. Ayesha Siddiqa, a Pakistani defense analyst, said the civilian government should broaden its focus and seize the opportunity to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the country's military and intelligence agencies a process that could reign in the amount of money they receive and reduce their power over Pakistani politics.

"I don't want something that just looks at where they went wrong this particular time," Obama's promised trip to Pakistan uncertain after death of bin Laden The Associated Press WASHINGTON President Barack Obama's promised trip to Pakistan this year, once seen as a reward for a key ally in the fight against terrorism, is now a looming headache for the White House as it tries to determine whether the government in Islamabad was complicit in allowing Osama bin Laden to live for years within the country's borders. Obama told Pakistani officials in the fall that he planned to travel diere in 2011, in part to soothe concerns that the president was favoring Pakistan's neighbor and archrival, India, by visiting there first White House spokesmen questioned this week by The Associated Press refused to say whether Obama still planned to go. The decision is of enormous strategic and symbolic importance to both countries. A presidential trip would signal a continued U.S. commitment to its complicated, yet necessary, relationship with Pakistan, a country that is not only integral in dealing with terrorism, but will also play a key role in the U.S.

troop drawdown in neighboring Afghanistan. Canceling the visit could be seen as a sign of U.S. mistrust of Pakistan's handling of extremists within its borders as underscored by the news that bin Laden lived in what Brennan himself called within "plain sight" in a neighborhood home to many in the Pakistani military. they all should be forced to resign. "All three of these men have brought insult to us, and they deserve all the punishment," said Iqbal.

The direct criticism of Kayani and Pasha was particularly striking because the two men enjoy a vaunted status in Pakistan due to their role in protecting the country from external threats, especially archenemy India. Some also feared that bad mouthing the shadowy spy agency, known as the Inter-Services Intelligence agency, could cause trouble and possibly even harm. Kayani has also had strong backing from the U.S. and other NATO countries, which have sought to enlist his help in battling militants along the country's border with Afghanistan. It is unclear whether anyone will actually be forced to step down.

The Pakistani government is viewed by many as totally unresponsive to the numerous woes plaguing the nation, from a struggling economy to frequent terrorist attacks. "It is not time to sprinkle salt on wounds," said Pakistan's In- formation Minister Firdous Aashiq Awan when asked about the calls for senior officials to resign. "It is time to apply ointment on the nation's wounds." The Pakistani military also Once-A-Year Value Center Clearance Event mm RuiihDinru Ends Today! Store hours today: 11 to 5 Discounts up to 8D off catalog pricing! mj ofe o)(fDQ a 71-285 Highway 111, Rancho Mirage 760-346-1 1 77 Visit us on Facebook for daily details and more information: facebook.comEriks.Contemporary.Furniture "like" us on facebook for future "facebook daily B3.