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Bangladesh journalists team visits DSS department, QAU. May 09, 2011

Bangladesh journalists team visits DSS department, QAU. May 09, 2011

A delegation of journalists from Bangladesh on a three-day visit to Pakistan on the invitation of Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka, visited the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies, Quaid-i-Azam University. Abdul Hameed, deputy editor of daily ‘Amra Desh’ and general secretary of the National Press Club, Dhaka, was heading the team. Answering questions, Dr. Rifaat Hussain, chairman of the department, said that the faculty on individual basis or collectively frequently attend seminars, meetings and talks organised by the Foreign Office and other government institutions but do not regularly give input or advice on policy matters to different government departments. The team members asked questions about the Abbottabad incidence and Professor Rifaat in reply said that in a briefing Salman Bashir, the foreign secretary, had stated that Pakistan had no knowledge of the intruding helicopters which were equipped with noise-reduction equipment and stealth technology. He said Pakistan was not expecting this, as the US did not share information with any country in the world. He said it did not mean Pakistan’s airspace is undefended. A member from BD team said the US attack was a rule of jungle and violated sovereignty of Pakistan. Dr. Rifaat said that it was an unlawful act but Pakistan treated it as an exception. He said: “We do not want this attack as a precedent for a similar action by any country of the world.” Dr. Rifaat said that based on whatever the US president Obama was saying, “We should have expected that Pakistan or its citizens were not the target in the attack.” He said that US President Obama acknowledged Pakistan’s cooperation in the war on terror. He said that the US is now increasingly convinced that ISI or any government institution was not institutionally involved regarding al-Qaeda or ‘jehadi’ infrastructure. The meeting concluded over the note, that counter terrorism is a shared goal of Pakistan and Bangladesh and anything that affects either of the two countries has implications for the other.