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Pakistan warns US against violating its airspace

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October 29, 2000 

KARACHI (AP) - Pakistan Saturday said it would not allow any country, including the United States, to use its air space to attack its friendly neighbor Afghanistan, where suspected terrorist Osama bin Laden is living.

"Pakistan did not allow the use of its airspace for the missile attack on Afghanistan in the past and it will not do so now," Foreign Minister Abdul Sattar told reporters in the southern port city of Karachi.

His statement comes amid growing fears in Pakistan and Afghanistan that Washington may strike Afghanistan if it uncovers evidence that bin Laden is behind the bombing of a U.S. navy destroyer in Yemen that killed 17 American marines.

The United States attacked Afghanistan with Tomahawk cruise missiles in August 1998 after its two embassies were bombed in East Africa. Washington accused bin Laden and his group al Qaida of masterminding the twin bombings earlier the same month.

The U.S. missiles flew over Pakistan to target eastern Afghanistan where Washington believed bin Laden was running terrorist training camps, but Sattar said no permission was given to the United States to use Pakistani airspace.

If it happens again Sattar said Pakistan will lodge a complaint with the United Nations Security Council.

Pakistan is one of only three countries to recognize Afghanistan's Taliban government, which now rules 95 percent of the country. The remaining five percent is ruled by the opposition, which is led by the ousted Afghan president Burhanuddin Rabbani.

Sattar warned that a second attack on Afghanistan that violates Pakistani airspace will result in a complaint to the United Nations Security Council.

The Afghan seat on the U.N. security council is still held by Rabbani's ousted government, despite repeated complaints from the Taliban who either want the seat or they want it left vacant.

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have denied bin Laden's involvement in the attack on the U.S. destroyer.

Washington is demanding the Taliban hand over bin Laden to stand trial either in the United States or a third country on charges of terrorism.

The Taliban say the U.S. administration has not provided any proof of bin Laden's involvement in terrorism.

The United Nations' imposed limited sanctions against the Taliban last year in an attempt to force the orthodox religious militia to hand over bin Laden for the trial.