Pakistan major worry for US panel as terrorism incubator

Dec 3, 2008, 18:01 GMT

Washington - A US panel on weapons of mass destruction got first-hand experience of the threat of terrorism when they tried to visit Pakistan in September as part of their preparation for a report released this week.

As they were making a connecting flight in Dubai on their way to Islamabad on September 20, US officials called them to stop the journey.

'The State Department said, 'We've got good news and bad news for you. The good news is you're not in your hotel. The bad news is your hotel is gone',' recalled former congressman Timothy Roemer, a member of the congressional-chartered Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction, Proliferation and Terrorism, on Wednesday.

The panel was making its first public remarks after the report was released Tuesday. The chances that terrorists will use a nuclear or biological weapon to carry out an attack has grown increasingly likely and could happen by 2013, the report found.

Al-Qaeda has become better organized and biological weapons materials are more accessible than ever, said former senator Bob Graham, commission chairman. The findings led the panel to conclude that a major attack will more likely be a biological weapon.

'Our adversaries have not been waiting,' said Graham. 'Al-Qaeda, the most likely terrorist group to gain access to weapons of mass destruction, has reorganized itself in the last eight years into a more nimble and global organization.'

Former senator Jim Talent, vice-chairman, said the panel determined that a biological weapon is more likely than a nuclear attack, since the material is easier to come by, easier to weaponize and easier to mass-produce in secret laboratories for repeated attacks.

The government needs to be 'more aggressive' in demanding 'a culture of accountability and a partnership with the life science community, reforming how we regulate the high containment labs where they work on these kinds of pathogens,' Talent said.

Answering a question from reporters, Talent confirmed that the panel had identified Pakistan as 'the most dangerous place in terms of the nexus between proliferation and terrorism.'

The concerns centered not only on the stability of the government and its status as a nuclear power, but also on the question of whether there are 'adequate protocols between Pakistan and India' in the event of a crisis to make sure things 'don't escalate.'

Since last week's terrorist attacks in Mumbai, tension has grown in the region as US and Indian officials have pointed the finger at Pakistani terrorists. India is also a nuclear power.

On September 20, terrorists bombed the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, killing more than 50 people.

'That was a near miss for this commission and for its members but certainly a signal that Pakistan, when you're looking at the confluence of terrorism and proliferation, all roads lead to Pakistan,' Romer said.

Roemer said the commission had discussed redefining US aid to Pakistan for more balance between military and economic recipients, 'so there are development projects, educational projects, schools that compete with the madrassas,' Roemer said.

In its report, the panel said the United States must move quickly to work with other countries to increase security and strengthen international organizations to prevent an attack from taking place.