Newly uncovered rules of engagement show that the US military gave elite units abroad to go-ahead and enter Pakistan in pursuit of suspected terrorists more than three years ago (2004), without informing Pakistani authorities in advance.
San Francisco, Aug 24 : Newly uncovered "rules of engagement" show that the US military gave elite units abroad to go-ahead and enter Pakistan in pursuit of suspected terrorists more than three years ago (2004), without informing Pakistani authorities in advance.
The documents obtained by a news agency offer a detailed glimpse at what US Army Rangers and other terrorist-hunting units were authorised to do earlier in the war on terror.
The interviews with military officials suggest some of those same guidelines have remained in place, such as the right to "hot pursuit" across the border, the document says.
Pakistan, a key US ally in the war on terror after 9/11 attacks, has long viewed such incursions as a threat to its sovereignty.
Islamabad had earlier protested loudly when US Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama pledged to grant American forces authority to unilaterally penetrate Pakistan in the hunt for terrorist leaders.
Washington repeated assurances that it would consult before any such incursions, The News reported.
The document says that chasing al-Qaeda leaders across the Pakistan-Afghanistan border was a fair game.
The documents states, entry into Pak authorised for the following reasons: Hot pursuit of al-Qaeda, Taliban and terrorist command-and-control targets "from Afghanistan into Pakistan.
The go ahead depended on the approval of the the head of the US Central Command, which oversees American forces in the Middle East and Central Asia, and if the Defence Secretary approves such an incursion, the document says.
ANI