ISLAMABAD/DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (Reuters) – When al Qaeda leader Abu Yahya al-Libi arrived in northwest Pakistan several years ago, he commanded so much respect that even some of the world’s most dangerous militants held him in awe.

Already a legend in the shadowy world of jihad for breaking out of a high security U.S. prison in neighbouring Afghanistan in 2005, he seemed to promise endless funds, training and inspiration for men who dreamed of unleashing carnage in New York or London.

ISLAMABAD/DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (Reuters) – When al Qaeda leader Abu Yahya al-Libi arrived in northwest Pakistan several years ago, he commanded so much respect that even some of the world’s most dangerous militants held him in awe.

Already a legend in the shadowy world of jihad for breaking out of a high security U.S. prison in neighboring Afghanistan in 2005, he seemed to promise endless funds, training and inspiration for men who dreamed of unleashing carnage in New York or London.

June 4 (Reuters) – A series of drone strikes over the
weekend and a confrontation on Monday near the border town of
Peshawar between U.S. diplomats and local police added new
strains to already tense relations between the United States and
Pakistan.

U.S. and Pakistani government sources said Abu Yahya al
Libi, a senior Al Qaeda leader who had survived previous drone
attacks, was a target of one of the latest strikes, which
occurred early on Monday in North Waziristan.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – As Washington fumed over the jailing of a Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA hunt down Osama bin Laden, an educated Islamabad businesswoman voiced her own outrage – at the United States.

“All we ever got from the Americans is instability and violence,” she said, echoing what many Pakistanis believe is Washington’s contribution to their country and region over three decades.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – The Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA find Osama bin Laden faced accusations of corruption and other wrongdoing long before he was captured by Pakistani intelligence agents and then jailed for 33 years for treason.

In interviews over the weekend, several current and former Pakistani officials described the doctor, Shakil Afridi, as a hard-drinking womaniser who had faced accusations of sexual assault, harassment and stealing. They said his main obsession was making easy money.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – The Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA find Osama bin Laden faced accusations of corruption and other wrongdoing long before he was captured by Pakistani intelligence agents and then jailed for 33 years for treason.

In interviews over the weekend, several current and former Pakistani officials described the doctor, Shakil Afridi, as a hard-drinking womanizer who had faced accusations of sexual assault, harassment and stealing. They said his main obsession was making easy money.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Osama bin Laden’s three wives were fiercely loyal to him and gave little away when they were interrogated after the al Qaeda chief was killed in a U.S. raid over a year ago, a Pakistani intelligence agent who questioned them said.

The three women were arrested by Pakistani security forces after the Navy SEAL raid on bin Laden’s safe house in the town of Abbottabad, about 35 km (60 miles) from the capital Islamabad.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Osama bin Laden’s three wives were fiercely loyal to him and gave little away when they were interrogated after the al Qaeda chief was killed in a U.S. raid over a year ago, a Pakistani intelligence agent who questioned them said.

The three women were arrested by Pakistani security forces after the Navy SEAL raid on bin Laden’s safe house in the town of Abbottabad, about 35 km (60 miles) from the capital Islamabad.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan is unlikely to re-open supply routes to NATO troops in Afghanistan unless the United States offers a politically acceptable formula in talks on ending a six-month standoff on the issue, a Pakistani official said on Thursday.

The official said the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)had to be politically savvy, taking into account widespread anti-American sentiment in the country ahead of general elections due by early next year.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – The United States hopes Pakistan will soon agree to re-open supply routes to NATO troops in Afghanistan, a U.S. official said on Wednesday, after a Senate panel threatened to cut aid to Islamabad over the standoff.

Pakistan closed the supply routes, seen as vital to the planned withdrawal of most foreign troops from Afghanistan before the end of 2014, in protest against last November’s killing of 24 Pakistani soldiers in a NATO air attack along the Afghan border.