Islamabad, Jan 13 (ANI): Pakistani-American businessman Mansoor Ijaz might have sought the help of the Pakistani Army for his protection during his trial in that country over the Memo Gate issue, but research into his articles and statements has revealed that he had accused the army and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of protecting Osama bin Laden right after the May 2 US raid in Abbottabad.
In a radio interview in May, Ijaz had also claimed that Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani may have been forewarned by the US about the raid, though in November he claimed that it was the country's civilian leadership that had prior information about the raid, The Daily Times reports.
In an article in Financial Times on May 3, Ijaz wrote, "As Pakistan now awakens to a post-bin Laden era, the nuclear-armed nation seems unable to respond truthfully or credibly to the duplicity of its policies or the complicity of its spy agency in harbouring a mass murderer."
"The compound's location near an elite Pakistani military academy and among the homes of high-ranking Pakistani military retirees raises hard questions about Pakistan's role in harbouring the al Qaeda leader in plain sight while its intelligence services and military chiefs nursed on the American taxpayers' wallet."
On May 3, Ijaz also appeared on Fox News TV and claimed that "military types" were involved in building the compound in Abbottabad where Osama bin Laden was located.
"It seems implausible that Inter-Services Intelligence, the premier Pakistani spy agency, knew nothing about where bin Laden was. Indeed, it seems much more likely that elements within the agency knew exactly where he was and kept bin Laden within that compound on just the terms it wanted. In all of this, Pakistan has almost certainly acted as a knowing babysitter, watching over the terror master so he would do no further harm -as long as the babysitting fees were sufficient and recurring," Ijaz added.
These allegations contradict his latest claims, and could here raise doubts about his credibility during the trials.
Meanwhile, Ijaz has said that would fly to Pakistan to stand trial in order to reveal the "unaltered truth" about the Memo Gate issue.
Ijaz said that he would bring with him records of phone calls and text message exchanges with Haqqani to prove his case. (ANI)
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