Quoting a US military official, Washington Post reported that Pakistan had ordered the departure of up to 20 percent of the roughly 150 US Special Operations forces trainers in the country in the wake of a series of clashes between the two governments.The paper quoted the official as saying that between 25 and 30 trainers were “told to leave” after CIA contractor Raymond Davis shot and killed two Pakistanis in Lahore. The government had threatened to reduce the US presence there after grudgingly releasing Davis in March, the paper said.
Since al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was fatally shot in his hideout in Abbottabad, relations have become even more frayed. The Obama administration has asked pointed questions about bin Laden’s support system in Pakistan, and the government here asserts that US raiders violated the country’s sovereignty.US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Marc Grossman met with military and government officials in Islamabad this week as the administration moved to re-establish the partnership with one of its key counterterrorism allies even as it continued to demand answers about bin Laden. In an interview with a local English daily, Grossman said the two countries “need to work together” against the shared terrorism threat.
