ISI to reserve reaction to ‘terrorist label’ for time being
April 27th, 2011 - 11:11 am ICT by ANI
Islamabad, April 27(ANI): The Inter Services Intelligence will reserve its comments for the time being on the recent US diplomatic documents released by whistle-blower website WikiLeaks, in which American military investigators labelled the Pakistani spy agency a terror group, a senior ISI officer has said.
A secret 2007 cable of “terrorist and terrorist support entities” has listed the ISI as a terrorist group along with 70 other groups, including the Iranian intelligence and the Taliban.
A senior ISI officer told The News that the intelligence agency would reserve its reaction on the issue for the time being.
It is understood that the ISI is not taking the latest accusations lightly, and will be making its reactions public shortly, the report said.
When US Embassy spokesperson Alberto Rodriguez was approached to comment on the latest controversy, he replied: “As Secretary [Hillary] Clinton has said, the United States has no stronger partner than Pakistan when it comes to counterterrorism efforts against extremists who threaten us both. We recognize the many sacrifices Pakistani people have made in the war against insurgents”.He said that the US remains a steadfast and committed partner of the Pakistan Government in its very difficult efforts to counter and defeat terrorism.
“We are working closely with Pakistan in achieving our shared goal of defeating insurgents, and we will continue to work closely together in the face of this common threat to ensure the safety of our people today and in he future,” he added.
Meanwhile, the government, which was quiet on Monday when the allegations first hit the front pages of newspapers, has come to life.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik said in Karachi on Tuesday: “The ISI is being wrongfully defamed internationally. The ISI is not and has never been involved in politics.”Malik said that the ISI had ‘tremendously’ served Pakistan, adding: “The ISI is a patriotic organisation which has a huge role in combating terrorism. Those who are trying to bring the ISI into disrepute will never succeed in their designs.” (ANI)
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Tags: alberto rodriguez, counterterrorism, diplomatic documents, front pages, hillary clinton, intelligence agency, inter services, interior minister, iranian intelligence, isi, latest controversy, military investigators, pakistan government, rehman malik, spy agency, terror group, terrorist group, terrorist label, whistle blower, wikileaks