Bush Defends Pakistan's Lame Hunt for Bin Laden

President Bush on Saturday defended Pakistan's cooperation in the hunt for Osama bin Laden despite the inability of U.S. and Pakistani troops to find the al-Qaida leader who, Bush once declared, was wanted dead or alive. The trail has gone cold in the more than three years since U.S. forces toppled the Taliban, bin Laden's patrons in Afghanistan, after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Bin Laden, who masterminded the strikes, is believed to be hiding in the wild mountainous region along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Oval Office meeting between Bush and President Pervez Musharraf came just days after Pakistan's army said it was pulling out of one important area along the border. Still, Bush had nothing but praise for Pakistan and Musharraf as critical to the search and the overall fight against terrorism. "His army has been incredibly active and very brave in southern Waziristan flushing out an enemy that had thought they had found safe haven," Bush said. [more]

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