US ‘interrogates’ Imran Khan on drones
Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf chief Imran Khan.— Photo by AFP
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani politician Imran Khan has said he was pulled off a New York-bound plane by US immigration officials and interrogated about his view on American drone strikes in his country.
Khan, leader of the Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI), was headed to New York to attend a fund raiser organised by his party when he was stopped by US officials in Toronto on Friday, he said.
“I was taken off from plane and interrogated by US Immigration in Canada on my views on drones. My stance is known. Drone attacks must stop,” he wrote on Twitter.
Officials from Khan’s party said the delay meant he missed his flight and was late for the party fundraising event in New York, but he insisted “nothing will change my stance”.
“My stand on drones is very clear. I did not say sorry to them,” Khan said after arriving in New York, according to a local news channel.
“I still couldn’t understand why they did this. The official was questioning me about drones but I think he himself didn’t understand what he was talking about,” he added.
The US ambassador to Pakistan “knew that I will always oppose the drone attack, then why (did) they issue me visa”, he later said at the fund raising event.
Ali Zaidi, a senior party leader demanded “a prompt and thorough inquiry into this sordid episode” and sought “an unconditional apology from the US government”.
US officials in Washington declined to comment.
Khan has campaigned vociferously for an end to the controversial US campaign of missile strikes against suspected Taliban and al Qaeda militants in Pakistan’s tribal areas.
He argues they are illegal and counterproductive and earlier this month he led thousands of supporters – and a group of American peace activists – on a march to the edge of the restive tribal districts to protest against drones.
Khan led the two-day protest march against US drone strikes with some 15,000 of his supporters and dozens of Western peace activists to Tank, the last town before the semi-autonomous tribal belt.
It was an unprecedented gesture from a mainstream politician in one of the most dangerous parts of the country, a semi-autonomous zone that is a hotbed of activity by Taliban and al Qaeda militants.
Pakistani authorities did not allow the protesters to enter the tribal district of South Waziristan – where missiles fired by US drones routinely target militants – for security reasons and blocked the road to Tank with shipping containers.
US officials say the drone program is a key weapon in the war on terror. But peace campaigners condemn it as a breach of international law, Pakistanis as a violation of sovereignty that breeds extremism, and politicians including Khan as a sign of a government complicit in killing its own people.
Khan, who is campaigning ahead of general elections next year, has made opposition to the drone programme a key plank of his party’s policy.
Critics accuse him of merely trying to further his own career and of ignoring both atrocities blamed on militants and abuses by the Pakistani army.
Although leaked US cables have revealed tacit support for the drone strikes from Pakistan’s military and civilian leaders, Islamabad has increasingly condemned the programme as relations with Washington have deteriorated.
dont come to america if you ll hate us..seriously STAY home
I am not sure Imran is telling the truth about his interrorgation at Toronto airport. His views on drones were well known. Why would the US official waste one hour talking to him about them? Also, why was it a one to one meeting with him alone?
I think the way “homeland security” works it that they keep record of who is saying what and when you appear on their doorstep, they ask you again to check if you have changed your stance on your remarks, btw, if he contradict america so much, what in the world he is doing there? getting bored in Lahore? Isn’t this great? in the morning they curse America and the evening they take a flight out to New York for some R&R !!!
Disgraceful behaviour though not entirely surprising! However very disappointed by the colonial lackeys who support external parties. Perhaps they don’t travel.
Sad and bad incident,US is losing it i think.
I wonder if Mr Imran Khan is being specifically forthright in his explanations.I am sure USA knows well the views of his on this subject and there was no need to interrogate him.Will he come up with better and plausible reason?
What IK is saying does not make any sense. Why would they stop him and ask about his policy on drones? A futile attempt to help increase his popularity? or have a secret meeting to give him a new agenda? and with the fear of being exposed in media, IK pre-emptively gave a confused statement about his engagements with US Administration
…a demonstration of Pakistani education and intellectual maturity.
Not to sound disrespectful to Pakistan but, 99.999% of Americans have no idea who Imran Khan is, and don’t care. We do not play cricket in the US, and we usually don’t have much respect for sports stars’ political opinions. We also have our own elections to worry about. IK is acting as if the US government orchestrated this interrogation as an attempt to intimidate him, when in reality it is nothing more than some lowly customs agent doing his job. Now if US customs had any knowledge of Imran Khans’ sympathies for the Taliban, I’m sure they would be more diligent with their questioning, but I doubt the customs agent had any reason to ask him about drones. It would never have occurred to him because it has nothing to with US border security. This is why I think he is using this so called “drone interrogation” to drum up publicity ahead of his arrival in New York.
From the looks of the weather forecast, his drone rally in NY has a very good chance of being rained out.
i think he is not telling the truth and making a fuss about nothing
He was asked about funds not drones .
Iran shot down one US drone and refused handing over its remains and copied it. USA stopped further drone missions till date.
your point?
Very well said.