Bush may enter Pak in pursuit of bin Laden

Washington, Sept 21: President Bush has said he would send US forces inside Pakistan in pursuit of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden if he received ''reliable intelligence'' about his whereabouts.

''We would take the action necessary to bring him to justice,'' he said, in an interview on CNN yesterday.

President Bush said he believed Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf ''is a strong ally in the fight against terrorism who would like to bring al-Qaeda to justice. But the remote Pakistani-Afghan border area where bin Laden is thought to be hiding is a hostile territory.'' US forces are in Afghanistan but are not authorised to conduct operations across the border in Pakistan.

Responding to the interview, Gen Musharraf said, in New York, where he was attending the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session, that he would not like to see US troops enter his country in pursuit of bin Laden.

''We would not like to allow that at all. We will do it ourselves. We would like to do it ourselves,'' Gen Musharraf said.

President Bush and President Musharraf are scheduled to meet here at the White house tomorrow where they would discuss the issues along with other national and international subjects.

UNI

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