Abbottabad Commission briefed on legal issues
ISLAMABAD: The inquiry commission on the May 2 US operation in Abbottabad on Wednesday went through laws which the American and Pakistani governments quote to justify or oppose the raid carried out to hunt down Al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden.
International legal affairs expert Ahmer Bilal Soofi gave a detailed presentation to the members of the commission headed by Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal.
According to a handout, the commission interviewed the director general of Intelligence Bureau (IB), chairman of the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra), Advocate Soofi and an explosives expert.
Its next meeting will be held on Oct 31.
According to sources, the commission was apprised of the American and international laws cited by the US government to justify the operation. It was also informed about Pakistan’s perception on the incident and laws quoted by the government while opposing the US raid.
The commission wanted to ascertain the legality of the US intrusion and use of force against the backdrop of the United Nations charter and Security Council resolutions, the sources said.
It was also informed about the charters of the Northern Atlantic Treat Organisation (Nato) and the International Security Assistance Force engaged in Afghanistan.
The sources said the commission wanted to know whether the force fighting against Al Qaeda and Taliban in Afghanistan hadthe mandate to conduct a military operation in Abbottabad to hunt down Bin Laden.