A Pakistani-based Haqqani group affiliated with the Taliban was holed up in the building pictured during the fighting that targeted the U.S. embassy and NATO headquarters in Kabul, Afghanistan. UPI/Enayat Asadi |
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ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Sept. 27 (UPI) -- Pakistani army generals plan no immediate targeting of the violent Haqqani network despite U.S. pressure, military officials told CNN.
The Haqqani network, which U.S. officials say has safe haven in Pakistan, has been blamed for the recent high-profile attacks in neighboring Afghanistan including the Sept. 13 attack on the U.S. Embassy and NATO facilities in Kabul. The U.S. pressure on Pakistan to go after the Haqqanis has intensified, further straining bilateral relations.
The Pakistani generals' decision was taken at a weekend meeting called by army chief, Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, said the two military officials who spoke to CNN.
The generals felt the Pakistani army is already stretched too thin fighting militants in northwest Pakistan, they said.
"We are not in a position to undertake an operation at this point," one of them was quoted as saying.
The generals' meeting was called after Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a Senate committee that Pakistan's top intelligence agency was supporting the Haqqani network and its attacks against U.S. targets in Afghanistan, including the Sept. 13 Embassy attack, the report said.
"The allegation of Pakistan's involvement in the attack on the U.S. Embassy in Kabul is just a conspiracy against us," one of the officials told CNN, accusing Washington of using Pakistan as a "scapegoat" for its failed policy in Afghanistan.
In other developments, Kayani after the meeting reportedly canceled his scheduled trip to Britain. Pakistani Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has called for a meeting Thursday of various political parties and top military and intelligence officials to discuss the U.S. allegations, the report said.
U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan Cameron Munter met with Pakistani Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir Monday to discuss issues including challenges to bilateral relations.
