Pakistan Warns US on Lack of Communication on Bin Laden Raid

Officials Concerned Attack Will Set a Precedent for Cross Border Operations

Despite the Obama Administration’s initial claims that the Sunday morning raid that killed Osama bin Laden was done with the cooperation of the Pakistani government, officials later admitted that they didn’t even tell the Zardari government about the attack until after the fact.

Officials defended the secrecy, claiming they thought Pakistan’s government would tip off bin Laden and allow him to escape. This fits neatly into the narrative of Pakistan supporting the terror leader, but Pakistan was quick to condemn the policy.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari insisted that the government “did its part” but officials also cautioned that the unilateral action must not be repeated by the Obama Administration. Officials made no indication that they were planning to formally protest the raid.

And indeed, if this were an isolated raid that killed bin Laden, the Pakistani government would likely not have said anything. It is the repeated US strikes into Pakistan and the constant calls for cross border raids and possible invasions that has officials concerned that an extremely “special case” raid will be used as a precedent for a new Obama escalation.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.