Pakistan intel chief says willing to quit

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ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, May 13 (UPI) -- Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha, head of the Pakistani intelligence agency, told lawmakers Friday he is willing to resign, members of Parliament said.

Pasha spent several hours in a closed session of Parliament discussing the killing of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan by U.S. forces, The Washington Post reported. MPs said he told them Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, head of the army, had refused to accept his resignation.

If Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani decides he should no longer head Inter-Services Intelligence, he is willing to stand aside, Pasha said.

The May 2 U.S. helicopter raid on bin Laden's compound in Abbotabad has raised a number of questions about the Pakistani intelligence agency. Bin Laden apparently lived for several years in a town popular with retired military officers, possibly with the knowledge of some in the Pakistani military, and U.S. Navy SEALS were able to penetrate deep into Pakistan without Pakistani officials being aware of it.

Kayani was at the briefing but Pasha did most of the talking, lawmakers said. Pasha apologized for intelligence failures.