Anti-Pakistan resolution moved in US Congress

WASHINGTON (NNI): A US Congressman has introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives calling on Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to designate Pakistan as "a state sponsor of terrorism."

Democrat Frank Pallone, founder of the Congressional Caucus on India, introduced the resolution along with the former Republican co-chair of the Caucus, Bill McCollum.

The various clauses of the resolution note that reports from Western media sources have cited Pakistan "as a base and training ground for terrorist groups and that Islamabad has demonstrated a reluctance to halt the use of its soil by terrorist organisations." It also cites reports alleging Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of involvement in terrorist activities.

The resolution notes during the December 1999 hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC 814, it was reported that Indian intelligence intercepted satellite telephone conversations between terrorist groups in Kashmir that confirmed Pakistan had links to the hijackers. It also cites reports that after the resolution of the crisis, the hijackers left Afghanistan for Pakistan.

The resolution further notes that Pakistan is one of three countries that recognise the Taliban as the legitimate government in Afghanistan and that the militia has provided refuge and assistance to Saudi dissident Osama bin Laden. Islamabad, it alleges, has hindered US and international efforts to apprehend bin Laden, who is accused by Washington of masterminding the bombings of its missions in Nairobi and Dar-es-Salaam in 1998 that killed more than 200 people.

The resolution notes that Pakistan was placed on the US State Department's "watch-list" of suspected state sponsors of international terrorism in 1993 and enumerates several cases of terrorist attacks or attempted terrorism that have been linked to Pakistan, many of which have resulted in death or injury to Americans and other Westerners.