Tue, Aug 16, 2011
No Official Confirmation, But 'Reason To Believe' Photos And
Skin Sample Taken
The circumstances surrounding the final hideout of Osama bin
Laden, where he had lived for years near Pakistan's main military
academy, led to serious questions about whether the nation was
really much of a US ally in the fight against al Qaeda. New
revelations are likely to encourage those inclined to answer,
"no."
On Sunday, the Financial Times reported that Pakistan, which
enjoys a close relationship with China, gave Chinese military
investigators access to a previously unknown stealth helicopter
which crashed and was abandoned on the roof of bin Laden's
Abbottabad compound during the raid in which he was killed. That
access is said to have included photos, and a sample of the skin of
the aircraft, and is said to have happened despite specific
requests from the US not to allow it.
Widely publicized photos circulated
immediately after the May 2 raid showed that most of
the helicopter had been successfully destroyed by departing US
Navy Seal commandos, but a substantial portion of the tail remained
intact. Even those photos led to widespread commentary on what
appeared to be new stealth technology around the tail rotor.
Pakistan expressed its outrage over the lack of prior
notification of the US raid by cutting back on the number of US
trainers allowed in the country and limiting the activities of the
CIA. The paper reports a US official said there was "reason to
believe" access to the downed helicopter had been arranged for the
Chinese, but no official confirmation was available.
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