WASHINGTON — A Senate panel expressed its outrage Thursday over Pakistan’s conviction of a doctor who helped the United States track down Osama bin Laden, voting 30-0 to cut aid to Islamabad by $33 million — $1 million for every year of the physician’s 33-year sentence for high treason.
The punitive move came on top of deep reductions the Appropriations Committee already had made to President Barack Obama’s budget request for Pakistan, a reflection of the growing congressional anger over its lack of cooperation in combatting terrorism. The overall foreign-aid budget for next year had slashed more than half of the proposed assistance and threatened further reductions if Islamabad failed to open overland supply routes to U.S.-led NATO forces in Afghanistan.
Republicans and Democrats criticized Pakistan a day after the conviction of Shakil Afridi. The doctor ran a vaccination program for the CIA to collect DNA and verify bin Laden’s presence at the compound in Abbottabad where U.S. commandos found and killed the al-Qaeda leader in May 2011.
“We need Pakistan, Pakistan needs us, but we don’t need Pakistan double-dealing and not seeing the justice in bringing Osama bin Laden to an end,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
The full Senate is expected to vote on the bill this summer.
