'Somebody' in Pakistan knew about Osama: US

WASHINGTON: US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday that "somebody" in Pakistan knew Osama bin Laden was hiding in the country but there was no proof that Islamabad leaders were aware.

"My supposition is, somebody knew," Gates told a news conference.


But Gates and the US military's top officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, said there was no evidence that leaders in Islamabad knew the whereabouts of the al Qaeda chief before a US raid this month that killed bin Laden.

Gates and Mullen also advised against cutting off aid to Pakistan, saying Washington had important interests at stake and that Islamabad had already been "humiliated" by the raid.

"I think we have to proceed with some caution," Gates said. "My own view is we need to continue the assistance that we have provided that benefits the Pakistani people," he said.

"If I were in Pakistani shoes, I've already paid a price. I've been humiliated, I've been shown the Americans can come in here and do this with impunity," he said.

As to whether Pakistani authorities knew the hiding place of bin Laden, Gates said: "It's my supposition, I think it's a supposition shared by a number in this government, that somebody had to know, but we have no idea who and no proof and no evidence."

He said he shared the "frustration" felt by US lawmakers towards Pakistan but stressed that President Barack Obama's administration could not make allegations without evidence.

"It's hard to go to them with an accusation when we have no proof that anybody knew." (AFP)