.Pakistan court declares AQ Khan a free citizen
NEW DELHI: Islamabad High Court on Friday declared disgraced nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan a free citizen and abolished his house arrest.
Chief Justice of the high court Sardar Muhammad Aslam while announcing a verdict on several petitions filed against house arrest of Dr AQ Khan declared him a free citizen and said that he is free to move across the country, Pakistan’s The News said.
According to PTI, Khan said Pakistan's military is capable of tackling any threats, including from India.
"The government is strong and the armed forces can tackle everyone," he said outside his heavily-guarded home while interacting with the media for the first time after the restrictions imposed on him were eased.
Khan stated this when asked if he had any advice for coping with possible threats from India in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.
However, he said "there is no threat, nothing like that has happened."
The scientist, who spoke to the media shortly after TV channels reported that he had reached a secret out-of-court settlement with the government, said he had no plans to associate himself again with Pakistan's nuclear programme.
He said he would dedicate himself to educational activities, including starting new institutions and advising people in the sector.
To a question on international institutions wanting to quiz him in connection with nuclear proliferation, Khan said: "Nonsense, no comments. I am not obliged to give answers to anybody else. I am obliged only to answer to my government, not to any foreigner or anybody."
Khan, lionised by many Pakistanis as the father of the country's atomic bomb, was pardoned but placed under house arrest in 2004 by the then president, Pervez Musharraf, soon after he made a televised confession to selling nuclear secrets to Iran, North Korea and Libya.
"The high court has declared him a free citizen," one of Khan's lawyers, Iqbal Jaffry, told a television station, after a decision by the court on a challenge to restrictions on Khan.
"He will have all rights available to people under the constitution and the Quran," he said.
According to a Reuters’ report, Khan's house arrest had been relaxed over the past year and he had been allowed to meet friends. He gave a series of interviews to media after a new government came to power last March.
The 72-year-old scientist, who has been treated for prostate cancer, irked the army by making comments about the smuggling of nuclear equipment that appeared to implicate the military and former army chief and president Pervez Musharraf.
A court upheld his detention last July and barred him from talking to the media about nuclear proliferation while he was under house arrest.
Last year, a UN nuclear watchdog said Khan's network smuggled nuclear weaponisation blueprints to Iran, Libya and North Korea and was active in 12 countries.
Last month, the department said it had imposed sanctions on 13 individuals and three private companies because of their involvement in Khan's network.
Pakistan regards the Khan nuclear proliferation case as closed, but US and international nuclear experts investigating proliferation still want to question Khan.
Due to security reasons, Khan will have to inform government about his movement in advance.
The verdict has directed the government to provide security to him on immediate basis. VVIP security would be given to him.
Khan will be free to express his views, talk to media and carry out research and get treatment of doctor of his own choice.
Times of India
Chief Justice of the high court Sardar Muhammad Aslam while announcing a verdict on several petitions filed against house arrest of Dr AQ Khan declared him a free citizen and said that he is free to move across the country, Pakistan’s The News said.
According to PTI, Khan said Pakistan's military is capable of tackling any threats, including from India.
"The government is strong and the armed forces can tackle everyone," he said outside his heavily-guarded home while interacting with the media for the first time after the restrictions imposed on him were eased.
Khan stated this when asked if he had any advice for coping with possible threats from India in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.
However, he said "there is no threat, nothing like that has happened."
The scientist, who spoke to the media shortly after TV channels reported that he had reached a secret out-of-court settlement with the government, said he had no plans to associate himself again with Pakistan's nuclear programme.
He said he would dedicate himself to educational activities, including starting new institutions and advising people in the sector.
To a question on international institutions wanting to quiz him in connection with nuclear proliferation, Khan said: "Nonsense, no comments. I am not obliged to give answers to anybody else. I am obliged only to answer to my government, not to any foreigner or anybody."
Khan, lionised by many Pakistanis as the father of the country's atomic bomb, was pardoned but placed under house arrest in 2004 by the then president, Pervez Musharraf, soon after he made a televised confession to selling nuclear secrets to Iran, North Korea and Libya.
"The high court has declared him a free citizen," one of Khan's lawyers, Iqbal Jaffry, told a television station, after a decision by the court on a challenge to restrictions on Khan.
"He will have all rights available to people under the constitution and the Quran," he said.
According to a Reuters’ report, Khan's house arrest had been relaxed over the past year and he had been allowed to meet friends. He gave a series of interviews to media after a new government came to power last March.
The 72-year-old scientist, who has been treated for prostate cancer, irked the army by making comments about the smuggling of nuclear equipment that appeared to implicate the military and former army chief and president Pervez Musharraf.
A court upheld his detention last July and barred him from talking to the media about nuclear proliferation while he was under house arrest.
Last year, a UN nuclear watchdog said Khan's network smuggled nuclear weaponisation blueprints to Iran, Libya and North Korea and was active in 12 countries.
Last month, the department said it had imposed sanctions on 13 individuals and three private companies because of their involvement in Khan's network.
Pakistan regards the Khan nuclear proliferation case as closed, but US and international nuclear experts investigating proliferation still want to question Khan.
Due to security reasons, Khan will have to inform government about his movement in advance.
The verdict has directed the government to provide security to him on immediate basis. VVIP security would be given to him.
Khan will be free to express his views, talk to media and carry out research and get treatment of doctor of his own choice.
Times of India
posted by madtom at 9:03 AM
2 Comments:
I want to hope that they released the guy so he could have a convenient fatal car crash on some remote Pakistani Hwy, but I fear it's so they can extort some money out of Obama to keep him under control. I guess the deals with Bush didn't transfer to the new guy. I would dedicate a drone with a couple of Hellfire missiles towards keeping tabs on his whereabouts.
The fucked up part is that this guy betrayed Pakistan and the Paki's themselves, and they idolize him...
The Iranians are operating their proxy armies inside Pakistan today, thanks to this guy.
The APU
Post a Comment
<< Home