ISI chief in US to explain Pak position

ISI chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha has left for the US to explain Pakistan’s position on the presence of Osama bin Laden in the country against the backdrop of reports that he may step down over the debacle. Pasha set off on the “critical mission for putting an end to misgivings about Pakistan in the US” yesterday, the influential Dawn newspaper reported today.

With Pasha hoping to restore trust during his US visit, The Daily Beast, a website affiliated to Newsweek magazine, reported that the ISI chief “may step down, as the government looks for a fall guy for the bin Laden debacle.” It said Pasha’s resignation “was only a matter of time.” The Dawn said uncorroborated reports suggested that Pasha met the CIA’s station chief in Islamabad before leaving for Washington and reminded him of the ISI’s contributions in the war on terror and the lead about bin Laden’s courier that eventually led the US to the Al-Qaeda chief’s hideout.