Pakistan Court Frees Nuclear Scientist from 5-Year House Arrest

Pakistan Court Frees Nuclear Scientist from 5-Year House Arrest

www.voanews.com

A court in Pakistan has freed Abdul Qadeer Khan from house arrest, five years after the founder of the country's nuclear weapons program admitted selling banned nuclear technology.

Islamabad's High Court ruled Friday that Abdul Qadeer Khan is now a free citizen. But the brief, one-page judgment said the terms and conditions of his freedom will remain confidential.

A jubilant Khan met with reporters outside his home in Islamabad, saying he was glad to be free of the restrictions on travel and communication that have loomed over him since 2004.

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He also says he had no plans to cooperate with any foreign investigations into his nuclear proliferation network.

"No answer, no comment. I'm not obliged to give answers to anybody," said Khan. "I am obliged only to answer to my government - not to any foreigners or anybody."

Last month the U.S. State Department imposed financial sanctions against Khan and his associates and three companies accused of links to the Khan network. U.S. officials say they believe the network is no longer operating.

Pakistani authorities have never permitted foreign investigators to question him.

The 72-year-old metallurgist is celebrated as a hero in Pakistan as the founder of the country's nuclear weapons program. His efforts led to the successful detonation of a nuclear device in 1998 - which was considered a key tactical victory in its long-running rivalry with India.

In 2004, Khan confessed that he had participated in a secret nuclear weapons proliferation network that sold technology to Iran, Libya and North Korea. He was later pardoned by President Pervez Musharraf and largely confined to his home in Islamabad.

In the last year he gave several interviews to media outlets, recanting his earlier confession and declaring he never was involved in nuclear proliferation. Last July, a court banned him from ever speaking about nuclear proliferation. It is unclear if Friday's ruling allows him to discuss his role in the proliferation network.

Khan said he is not bitter about the restrictions placed on him for the last several years. He said he took comfort in the similar circumstances of President Asif Zardari, who spent years in prison without being convicted of a crime, and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who was in exile in Saudi Arabia.

"Mr. Zardari was for eight years inside," said Khan. "And not a single case was proven against him. Nawaz Sharif was sent outside for eight years. So these things happen - we should forget and look forward."

Khan's release comes as Pakistan prepares for senate elections next month, with 50 of the senate's 100 seats open.

Khan says he has no interest in politics, but he would like to work on improving education in Pakistan.

This is certainly bound to make some people mad. I wonder what the life expectancy of Khan is now that he's been released.
Only time will tell what's in store for this man.

www.voanews.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Now we get to hear from Khan himself.

"Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, the Pakistani scientist considered the largest nuclear proliferator in history, was released from home confinement today and lashed out at the West for the first time.
Photo: Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, the Pakistani scientist considered the largest nuclear proliferator in history, was released from home confinement today and lashed out at the West for the first time.
Disgraced Pakistani nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan talks to the media outside his home in Islamabad, Pakistan. Khan says a court has granted him more freedom after years of de facto house arrest.
(B.K.Bangash/AP Photo)

"Are they happy with our God? Are they happy with our prophet? Are they happy with our leaders? Never," Khan, 72, told a group of journalists outside his home, just minutes after a court ruled he was free to move around the country. "So why should we bother what they say about us?

"I would be more worried what you [the media] say about me," Khan said. "Not what Bush says or Dick Cheney says. I damn don't care."

In Pakistan, Khan is a hero, the man who created the world's only Islamic nuclear state. But in 2004, he admitted selling nuclear technology to Iran, North Korea and Libya, and has been mostly restricted to his home in an upscale area of Islamabad ever since.

Just a few weeks ago, the U.S. sanctioned Khan as well as 12 colleagues and three companies linked to his proliferation work to "prevent future proliferation-related activities.""

I think Iran is hiring.

Edit:Link

[edit on 6-2-2009 by aboxoftrix]

I was just going to make a thread on this, glad I searched first.

I'm surprised this isn't getting more attention on ATS. If a nuclear bomb is detonated by Libya, Iran, North Korea, or any number of terror groups, he'll most likely be responsible. I don't think he'll last long outside those cell walls.

yes, i'm not sure if most people have seen this thread or not, it seems like it should have gotten more attention than it did, but we know about it so that's good. Thx for the reply