Global General

Pakistan government not hiding bin Laden

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-05-02 22:54

CANBERRA - The Pakistani government did not hide head of al-Qaida, Osama bin Laden in a high security compound, Australian Defense Minister Stephen Smith said on Monday.

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Bin Laden was killed in a raid by US forces on a house near the Pakistani capital Islamabad.

His death came after a near-decade long manhunt following the 9/11 terror attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon of US, which killed more than 3,000 people.

Smith disputed a suggestion that the Pakistani government knew bin Laden's whereabout.

Smith said US President Barack Obama praised Pakistan for helping US forces kill  bin Laden, and had rung Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari to thank him.

"It doesn't follow from that Pakistan or the Pakistan state or the Pakistan government was knowingly harboring," he told ABC Television.

"It's clear to me from President Obama's comments that he was pleased with Pakistan's assistance."

Meanwhile, Smith said al-Qaida will remain a force despite the death of its leader Osama bin Laden, and another leader was likely to replace bin Laden.

"Whilst we can understand that today is a significant setback for al-Qaida, it is not the end of the battle," he said.

"Other associates will take his place in due course."