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The Murder of Osama Bin Laden. U S Pakistan Partners in Crime Seymour Hersh

Brig Usman Khalid informed CIA of Osama’s presence in Abbottabad

Amir Mir
Tuesday, May 12, 2015
From Print Edition


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ISLAMABAD: Pulitzer prize winning American journalist Seymour Hersh’s most recent claim that a former Pakistani intelligence official had actually informed the Americans about the Abbottabad hideout of al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden (OBL), has given credence to the notion that a former ISI official provided the information about Osama’s location in exchange of US$ 25 million bounty as well as the US citizenship with a new identity.



Well-informed intelligence circles in the garrison town of Rawalpindi concede that the vital information about the bin Laden compound was actually provided to the Americans by none other than an ISI official - Brigadier Usman Khalid. The retired Brigadier, who has already been granted American citizenship along with his entire family members, persuaded Dr Shakil Afridi, a Pakistani physician, to conduct a fake polio campaign in the Bilal Town area of Abbottabad to help the Central Intelligence Agency hunt down Osama.



A February 18, 2012 Washington Post article by David Ignatius said



“Army Chief General Ashfaq Kayani was ISI chief at the time, but the dominant figure was President Pervez Musharraf”. Ignatius referred to former ISI chief General Ziauddin Butt and noted that a report in the Pakistani press in December had quoted him as saying that Osama’s stay at Abbottabad was arranged by Brigadier (R) Ijaz Shah on Musharraf’s orders. General Ziauddin Butt repeated his claim in the February 2012 issue of the Newsweek magazine, in an online interview conducted by Bruce Riedel. Riedel quoted Lt Gen Butt as saying: “General Musharraf knew that Osama bin Laden was in Abbottabad.” Ziauddin Butt claimed that Ijaz Shah was responsible for setting up bin Laden in Abbottabad, ensuring his safety and keeping him hidden from the outside. On the other hand, Musharraf has refuted having any knowledge about Osama living in Pakistan during his tenure.



It may be recalled that the New York Times had claimed in a March 2014 report that the US had direct evidence about former ISI chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha knowing Bin Laden’s presence in Abbottabad at the time. The newspaper also quoted former ISI chief Lt Gen Ziauddun Butt, saying Musharraf had arranged to hide Bin Laden in Abbottabad. While the military circles had strongly refuted the NYT report as a pack of lies, it was hard for the international community to believe that the world’s most wanted terrorist was living unnoticed for five years in a vast compound in Abbottabad without any support system.
 
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Would Pakistan shoot down US aircrafts???.
US RC drones have been flying day in and day out of pakistan, they are the easiest to shoot down....

Hi,

First of all---the drones are flying in with our permission---.

Why shoot down a joint venture.
 
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Osama Bin Laden was an unarmed elderly 'invalid' when Navy Seals killed him and Barack Obama lied about the mission, report claims


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Investigative journalist Seymour Hersh says the story of how the former al-Qaeda leader died is very different to what the public was told

ADAM WITHNALL
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Monday 11 May 2015

A Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist has claimed that Barack Obama lied about the killing of Osama bin Laden for his own political advantage, and that the former al-Qaeda leader was in fact an unarmed “invalid” when he was shot by US Navy Seals in 2011.

President Obama was accused of making up a number of key details that were fed to the public in the wake of the assassination, including that Bin Laden died in a fire-fight and that the Pakistani government had no role to play in the mission.

Seymour Hersh, whose previous investigations have included the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government, cited unnamed intelligence officials as part of what he called his “alternative history of the war on terror”.

Writing in the London Review of Books, Mr Hersh claimed that rather than hiding out in a compound in Abbottabad, Bin Laden was in fact being held prisoner by the Pakistani intelligence services when he was killed.


The article quotes “a retired senior intelligence official who was knowledgeable about the initial intelligence about Bin Laden’s presence in Abbottabad”, who said Pakistan had secretly detained the wanted terrorist for years to use “as leverage against Taliban and al-Qaeda activities”.

In the immediate aftermath of the killing, Obama told the media the mission had been a secret incursion into Pakistan and that a small team of Seals fought a dramatic gun battle with men inside Bin Laden’s compound.

But according to Mr Hersh’s source, senior Pakistani officials willingly gave up Bin Laden’s location to maintain good relations with the US and in exchange for a slice of a $25 million reward fund.

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Former US Navy Seal Rob O'Neill has been revealed as the man from Team Six who shot Osama Bin Laden in the 2011 Pakistan raid. They also facilitated the Navy Seals mission by cutting power to the compound and diverting the local military, it was alleged, and had even agreed with the White House upon an elaborate back story where it would be claimed that Bin Laden was killed in a drone strike in mountains on the Pakistan-Afghan border.

The White House has repeatedly insisted that Bin Laden would have been taken alive if he surrendered – but according to the retired official quoted by Hersh, “it was clearly and absolutely a premeditated murder”.

The Seals were given “absolute authority to kill the guy”, the official was quoted as saying, even if they only “suspected he might have some means of opposition, like an explosive vest under his robe”.

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Locals and media gather outside the compound, pictured in May 2011, where Osama Bin Laden was reportedly killed in an operation by US Navy Seals. “The truth is that bin Laden was an invalid, but we cannot say that,” the retired official reportedly said.

Mr Hersh also reports that White House claims Bin Laden was still receiving information from and giving orders to al-Qaeda were “lies, misstatements and betrayal”.

“The White House had to give the impression that bin Laden was still operationally important,” he quoted the official as saying. “Otherwise, why kill him?”

The White House is yet to comment on Hersh’s claims. On Monday, Mr Hersh appeared on CNN to defend his article.

"I am waiting for the White House to deny it," he said.

Osama Bin Laden was an unarmed elderly 'invalid' when Navy Seals killed him and Barack Obama lied about the mission, report claims - Americas - World - The Independent
 
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I'm not saying government knew about it nor can we claim everybody in Army knew, but someone did.
& he called the shots..
What a fantastic theory you have bro!
IF...and only IF..there was someone calling the shots to allow this kind of invasion in Pakistan it had to be the Army. Forget the civilian govt.

There is no clerk or some police official sitting in a room calling the 'shots'.
 
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If you think calmly about it. Person concerned is not a saint. He is senior Intelligence officer who would have done lot of bad things for country and himself ( as the job would demand). He probably does not have moral standards or other feel good things. He find a chance to earn 250 crore Pakistani rupee. Wow - that would be his reaction. He evaluate it. He thinks that if he does not do, someone else will. If you think more, he is giving information on most wanted terrorist. Not a bad thing in itself. In the end, he decide to get rich and live comfortable life.

You seem morally bankrupt like the traitor! My argument has nothing to do with OBL, it is to do with trust. He should be treated as a spy and an enemy of the state. He should be taken care off. This will send a message to other would be traitors that we will hunt you down where ever you are.

The amount of money is irrelevant. I hate people who can be bought.
 
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To the Americans here. Before you conclude on the guilt of Pakistan or otherwise I want you to go through the following. I know most of you Yanks are rather smart so I don't think I will have any problems unless PDF attracts certain type of Yank ....

Iraq was fire bombed into submission thereby putting into practice the "Peace through superior firepower" as supported in a avatar of a Yank here for allegedly supporting a nuclear programme and Afghanistan was bombed from the bronze age to the stone age for harbouring OBL

Given the above I ask everybody what would America do to a country that was hiding OBL contrary to US interests?

Surely in the eyes of US government this would be a crime worse than Iraq or Afghanistan because Pakistan was supposed to be US ally and enjoying significant grants as well as sales of advanced fighters like Block 52 F-16s? Would this duplicity not earn the wrath of a superpower

This needs thinking about. We the general ublic will never be privy to what really happened. To make a informed decision you would need access to all available information and we know no journalist anywhere is going to get acces to full classfied matariel. Maybe in 50 years or 100 years when old files are declassfied then we will know. All we can do for now is look at "effect" and then try to work backwards what the "cause" was.

What we do know is after OBL instead of bombing Pakistan to stone age - something that comes easy to a superpower or invading Pakistan like Iraq what did US administration do? Yes, they rewarded Pakistan with even more grants, even more weapons. What does that tell you? Instead of slapping us the Yanks are giving us sweets?

Now it is possible that US government has a habit of rewarding people who work against US interest and if people think that they need to question their own government. Also note that both the Bush and Obama administrations have followed the same policy toward Pakistan which can be summed as "sweets, more sweets".

Now compare our neighbours, another Muslim country. Iran. We have nuclear weapons. Iran does NOT. We have supposed to have hidden OBL. Iran did NOT hide OBL.

However which country can't piss crooked without US hurling threats? Iran

Which country is enjoying US largesse? Pakistan

Now conclude for yourselves ....

First of all Americans are wary about another war because of long drawn war in Afghanistan. After OBL they found a way out for exit and to justify the expenditure for the war. They just want their troops back home. Pakistan may be hiding OBL but with few arm twisting Americans always got their way w.r.t Pakistan. It wasn't the case with Iraq with Suddam Hussain in total control of Iraq.

Also Pakistan is no Iraq because it possess nuclear weapons. They will handle you with kid gloves because they need you to access Afghanistan. They will throw in some carrots and your army junta will be happy. Problems solved.

You are comparing to Iran, a country which is secretly trying to build nuclear weapons vs someone who has stockpiles of nuclear weapons and has means to deliver them.

Now the million dollar question if OBL hideout was known among some ISI officers. How will u verify that until someone from your establishment publishes some memoirs like Mr. Musharraf did. Time will tell until then just believe what you want to believe.

I don't know if you agree with me that Pakistan was made a scapegoat and your country image did look bad for hiding OBL. Thats what everyone from outside world thought about Pakistan that you guys were double dealing and made mockery of American largesse. Thats the impression Americans created with their daring raid in Abbottabad.
If Americans were in touch with Pakistanis about OBL why the necessity for the raid.
 
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Hi,

At least there is one truth here---the power was shut off at the time to the raid.

When the helicopter crashed---there must have been a big bang and the earth must have shook

supposed sub-machine gun rounds being fired---fire fight between seals and terrorists

then damaged helicopter being blown up----that would have been a massive boom or multiple booms

then there would be a large fire of the burning helicopter and its fuel

then the seals are still there for another 45 minutes for the ride to come and pick them up

and all this happened within 1 mile of the Pakistani military academy----

and all this happened 2 miles from the divisional head quarter

and Abottabad being a tourist city with a lts of expensive housing----the police would also be on its toes

what else---did I miss anything----oh yeah

the incoming flight of the CHINOOK---whooopp whooopp whooopp whooopp a massive helicopter lugging along that you could from 5 miles away

loading the seals and paraphernalia and then taking off---whoop whooopp whooopp whooopp ---chugging along----

and all thru this Pakistan military was sleeping---the same military that had a missile lock n the indian su30 within 30 second of the aircraft flying in----.

@CENTCOM Abdul Quddus --- hey Pappy---we all know that shit happens----we all get fcuked up in moment of glory and specialy with an arsehole like Panetta at the control---nothing good can come towards Pakistan---and with the coming election---our dear Mr Barack Hussein had to pull the genie out of the hat to win the election otherwise he would have been known as the first and only black president of the united states who got elected for one term and could not hold the office for the second term. He even got my vote twice---and I was a republican and my wife's vote as well and she was a republican as well---oh well----we get shafted by our own---what is new---.

Peter Bergen----all his drama is built around that one interview he had with Osama Bin Laden---. Peter Bergen a liar----he will say anything to get the goodwill going---at least Osama made him a millionaire---.

Then the navy seal comes on foxnews and says it is all lie----why would he say otherwise---foxnews just gave him a job payng around 200000 a year---why would be screw this new found job---.

@CENTCOM just remember that we all fcuk up at one time or another --- so when the request for the purchase of sabr radar hits the desk---just sign on the dotted line---.
 
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@MastanKhan I love your style Ha Ha Ha.
@my2cents

Your making a positive assertion that Pak knew about OBL. Something US government has denied. What proof do you have that is so strong that it overrides what US has said.

Maybe you got access to classified US files?
 
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By the way revenge/vengeance is out of question bcos tomorrow he may become your asset again or invite retaliation from US.

A traitor is a snake and we don't invite a snake in our house. A crime has been committed and punishment has to be meted out; DEATH! As far as US retaliation is concerned, these kinds of threats work on the weak and pathetic.
 
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She resided in America for over a decade, married a nationality holder and had children there. She was a green card holder herself though I agree that whether or not she was a full citizen is still subject to debate.

1. She lost her green card after her second marriage. She was never a USA citizen.

2. She was tried and sentenced as a Pakistan national.

3. There is no debate about these established facts.

4. I am not allowed to post links but official documents are available to confirm the above.
 
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"One of the saddest lessons of history is this, if we've been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We're no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It's simply too painful to acknowledge, even to ourselves, that we've been taken. Once you give a charlatan power over you, you almost never get it back." - Carl Sagan
 
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I heard in radio news today that this is a true story, many sources have verified.
 
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