Pakistan, US face off over shooter

ISLAMABAD – Without specifying and disclosing Raymond Davis’ position, the US embassy on Saturday demanded his immediate release, declaring him a diplomat three days after he killed two people in Lahore.
Interestingly, the detained American was on Thursday described by the US State Department as an American civilian working for the US consulate in Lahore after he was held by the police on double murder charges over the deaths of two motorcyclists.
More intriguing is the fact that the US embassy did not mention the name of the detained US national in its statements issued on Friday and Saturday, giving credence to the speculations that he was on a special assignment other than diplomatic in Pakistan and also suggesting that his real name might not be Raymond Davis.
“The US embassy in Pakistan calls for the immediate release of a US diplomat unlawfully detained by authorities in Lahore. The diplomat, assigned to the US embassy in Islamabad, has a US diplomatic passport and Pakistani visa valid until June 2012,” the statement read, contradicting the initial stance taken by the US state Department.
“When detained, the US diplomat identified himself to police as a diplomat and repeatedly requested immunity under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations,” the statement said, adding that the local police and senior authorities failed to observe their legal obligation to verify his status with either the US consulate general in Lahore or the US embassy in Islamabad.
Taking a position that the “diplomat” had been unlawfully kept in detention, the US embassy said he was formally arrested and remanded into custody, which was a violation of international norms and the Vienna Convention to which Pakistan was a signatory. “Displeasure has been conveyed clearly to the Pakistani authorities through diplomatic channels along with warning that the demand of Davis’ release, if not accepted, would cast deep negative impact on the ties between Washington and Islamabad,” a diplomat said.
The diplomat said the US authorities were also annoyed over the delay in granting counselor access to Davis as demanded by Ambassador Cameron Munter in his meetings with Interior Minister Rehman Malik and Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir on Friday.