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| The Alliance |
| US indictment won't hasten Omar Sheikh's extradition |
| 2002-03-16 |
He'll probably never set foot on American soil. It's in the interests of Certain Elements in the Pak government that he not do so. If by some mischance there was a move to ship him to the USA he'd meet with an "unfortunate accident." But it probably won't come to that. They'll try and set it up so that we're still "discussing the matter" when all our grandkiddies are little old men and women in nursing homes. But Pakistan says it reserves the right to prosecute Saeed before considering whether to allow the United States a chance to try him. First and easiest method. "We can't turn him over to you. We're building our own case." âInvestigations are going on,â Foreign Ministry spokesman Aziz Ahmed Khan said. âOnce the investigations are completed, it would be decided whether he has to be tried here or to be extradited.â Pakistan does not have an extradition treaty with the United States, although officials of the two governments are considering ways he might be handed over. And will continue with no resolution until three weeks after Doom's Day. The issue is unlikely to cause any friction between the two countries because Pakistan is a principal ally of the United States in war against terrorism... We're being polite. They're mistaking that for good relations. Saiful Molook, Saeedâs lawyer, said the U.S. indictment was âunfairâ because no crime was committed on American soil and that under Pakistani law, a person cannot be extradited who faces criminal charges in Pakistan. Daniel Pearl was the guy the "unfairness" fell upon. And he was an American citizen. If killing an American on foreign soil grants you immunity from American prosecution, it would also seem to take away your immunity from invasion and occupation. Pakistani investigators have failed to bring charges against Saeed despite holding him in custody for over a month, Molook said by telephone from the eastern border city of Lahore. âNow they are trying to fabricate charges against him,â Molook said. No need to fabricate charges when the case is pretty much open and shut. Prove he didn't do it in the face of the evidence and his confession and his insider's knowledge of the crime. Raja Quereshi, the chief prosecutor, said he hasnât received any papers regarding Saeedâs indictment in the United States. Or if he did he didn't pay any attention to them. Probably thought they were more junk mail. The decision to extradite Saeed will be taken purely by the government, he said. Yeah. In consultation with the ISI and with the terror network string-pullers in clerics' turbans. On Tuesday, a defiant Saeed told a judge in Karachi that Americans will suffer if he is sent to the United States. No doubt about that. We should handle the investigation and killing of the next batch directly. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |