CIA Chief in Pakistan Ousted as Officials Struggle to Ease Tension

Withdrawn for 'Medical Reasons,' Station Chief Won't Return

His original ouster from Pakistan came nominally for “medical reasons,” but the CIA station chief for Pakistan won’t be back, officials confirm. The Pakistani government says this is because of “US issues with Pakistan.

An official with the Pakistani government said that the move was an effort to “quickly repair the damage to their intelligence cooperation” and this is the second time in the past few months that a CIA chief has been ousted from the country.

The outgoing station chief was also said to have clashed with US Ambassador Cameron Munter, who reportedly objected to his use of drone strikes during key diplomatic meetings, even after Pakistani government officials objected.

The CIA has traditionally had a hugely close relationship with Pakistan’s ISI, which is funding in no small part by CIA grant money. This relationship has gone south since the Raymond Davis fiasco, during which the then-acting CIA station chief, in the country nominally as an employee of the US consulate, murdered two people on the streets of Lahore.

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.