Pakistan says bin Laden probably in Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD (AFP) - Pakistan said that Osama bin Laden was likely to be in Afghanistan, rejecting a reported claim by Kabul's foreign minister that the Al-Qaeda chief is hiding in Pakistani territory.

In the latest verbal salvo between the neighbours and allies in the US-led "war on terror", Islamabad dismissed criticism by new Afghan Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta of its attempts to catch Bin Laden.

"Nobody knows where Osama bin Laden is. If he is alive the chances are that he might be in Afghanistan but we cannot say for sure," foreign ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said when asked about Spanta's comments.

Spanta was reported to have told a German newspaper at the weekend that Pakistan was "half-hearted" in its efforts to track down Bin Laden and to crack down on Islamic militants.

"I think these allegations are absurd -- if anyone is making half-hearted efforts it's on other side," she said.

"Pakistan has sacrificed more in terms of the human lives than the combined loss of Afghanistan and ISAF (the
NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan)," Aslam said.

The spokeswoman said the foreign ministers of Pakistan and Afghanistan would now keep "close contact" following a decision to do so by Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

The two leaders met earlier this month in Azerbaijan during a regional summit.

Afghan officials have long said that the insurgency plaguing their country is being directed by leaders of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda movements who fled to Pakistan after the Taliban government was toppled in late 2001.

Pakistan denies the charge and says it has 80,000 troops combating insurgents along its border with Afghanistan.