www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/01/24/terror/main595582.shtml
CBS/AP Pakistan will not allow United States troops to use its soil for a planned spring offensive against Taliban or al Qaeda fugitives, officials said Thursday. Javed Iqbal Cheema, who as chief of the National Crisis Management Cell coordinates with United States officials in the war against terrorism, said Pakistans policy did not allow United States troops to operate inside the country. As a matter of fact they the United States have not contacted us for this purpose, he told The Associated Press. US officials in Washington said Wednesday the United States Defense Department was planning a new offensive amid concern that current operations in Afghanistan arent having the effect they want on terrorist networks. One official hinted that troops might extend operations to the Pakistani side of the Afghan border. Osama bin Laden and top lieutenants are believed to be in hiding in the rugged border regions possibly inside Pakistan. The United States-backed Afghan government have complained that resurgent Taliban rebels are operating from Pakistani territory and launching cross-border assaults. A Pakistani intelligence official said Thursday authorities have no specific information on bin Ladens whereabouts. Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said: Whenever we get any information about the presence of al Qaeda suspects in our areas, we send a Quick Response Force there, and we have done it on many occasions. Pervez Musharraf, a key United States ally, would face withering criticism from political opponents, particularly Islamic hard-liners who control two key border provinces, if United States forces were deployed inside Pakistan. Musharraf told CBS News Correspondent Tom Fenton last week that he didnt know for sure where bin Laden was, but speculated that the al Qaeda leader was probably in the frontier territories along the Pakistani and Afghan border. But, he said there was no possibility of a large contingent of American troops entering Pakistan to search for bin Laden, adding that it was a very sensitive subject. Even the presence of Pakistani troops in those semi-autonomous regions is politically sensitive, and sympathies for the Taliban run high among the deeply conservative tribal people who live there. US forces used Pakistani bases and airspace during the campaign that led to the late 2001 ouster of the hard-line Taliban from power in Afghanistan, but Pakistan insisted it only provided logistics support. Since 2002, Pakistans army has staged a number of operations targeting al Qaeda fugitives. Residents have reported seeing a small number of foreign personnel on such operations, but the Pakistani government has denied it. We will not allow any foreign troops to conduct any operations in Pakistan, Pakistani army spokesman Gen. Whenever they the United States ask for such things, we always decline. Bryan Hilferty declined to comment on the reported plans, saying the military doesnt comment on future operations. A United States defense official in Washington told AP that orders have been issued to prepare equipment and supplies, though the operation will not necessarily require additional troops in the region, where about 11,000 Americans are deployed. Pakistan says it has arrested more than 500 al Qaeda men over the past two years and many of them have been handed over to the United States. In January, Pakistani forces launched a raid on a village near the border where al Qaeda fighters were believed to be hiding. The interior minister said 18 suspected terrorists were captured, but didnt identify them. In October, a Pakistani operation at the border killed eight terror suspects, including Ahmed Said Khadr, an Egyptian-born Canadian and al Qaeda financier whose identity was confirmed this week by Pakistan after DNA tests on his body. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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