Washington, August 08: With the almost certain death of Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of Pakistani Taliban, a leading American South Asian expert Saturday said Islamabad can now no longer oppose the use of drones by the United States.
“The elimination of Mehsud, would make it difficult for Pakistanis to argue that the drones are not improving security in their own country, given that he was reportedly responsible for dozens of suicide bombings over the last 18 months that have killed several hundred Pakistani civilians and security personnel as well as the wife of current Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and political icon Benazir Bhutto,” said Lisa Curtis.
A senior research fellow for South Asia in the Asian Studies Center at The Heritage Foundation – a Washington-based think-tank, Curtis is frequently invited by the Congressional committees to testify on various South Asian issues.
–PTI