US raids Pakistan without prior approval

New York, Sep 11: Pakistan lacks the will and anility to combat terrorists, read classified orders of Bush administartion. So, US President Bush has secretly given a go ahead to US special forces to carry out ground attacks inside Pakistan without the prior approval of the country's government.

The classified orders signal a watershed for the Bush administration after nearly seven years of trying to work with Pakistan to combat the Taliban and al Qaeda elements, New York Times reported quoting senior American officials. "The situation in the tribal areas is not tolerable," a senior official told the paper. "We have to be more assertive. Orders have been issued."

The new orders, the paper said, reflect concern about safe havens for al-Qaeda and the Taliban inside Pakistan.

They also illustrate lingering distrust of the Pakistani military and intelligence agencies and a belief that some American operations had been compromised once Pakistanis were advised of the details, the official said.

US officials were quoting as saying that they will notify Pakistan when they conduct limited ground attacks like the Special Operations raid last Wednesday in a Pakistani village near the Afghanistan border, but that they will not ask for its permission.

OneIndia News