Raymond Davis is a CIA agent who was on assignment at the time of the incident, says a report in the Guardian. -Reuters File Photo

LONDON: The American who shot dead two men on a Lahore street, triggering a diplomatic crisis between Pakistan and the United States, is a CIA agent who was on assignment at the time of the incident, says a report in the Guardian. Based on interviews in the US and Pakistan, the Guardian said it could confirm that the 36-year-old former special forces soldier, Raymond Davis, was employed by the CIA. “It's beyond a shadow of a doubt,” said a senior Pakistani intelligence official.

A number of US media outlets have learned about Davis's CIA role but have kept it under wraps at the request of the Obama administration, which fears that the disclosure could inflame opinion in Pakistan and possibly put Davis at risk.

A Colorado television station, 9NEWS, initially made a connection after speaking to Davis's wife, who lives outside Denver. She referred its inquiries to a number in Washington which turned out to be the CIA.

The station subsequently removed the CIA reference from its website. Nicole Vap, an executive producer, said: “Because of the safety concerns, we decided to amend the story. But it remains accurate.”—Agencies

Opinion

Editorial

Faizabad redux
Updated 02 Oct, 2023

Faizabad redux

TLP was allowed to flourish despite its virulent ideology, recurrently causing immense embarrassment for Pakistani authorities in later years.
Exporting beggars
02 Oct, 2023

Exporting beggars

A RECENT revelation by the Senate Standing Committee on Overseas Pakistanis during a briefing to the Senate has...
Brutalising society
02 Oct, 2023

Brutalising society

THE Senate Standing Committee on Interior passed a bill last week with a majority vote that favoured the public...
Massacre again
Updated 01 Oct, 2023

Massacre again

If this monster is not vanquished at this stage, it will create a security nightmare of significant proportions.
A refuge no longer
01 Oct, 2023

A refuge no longer

SEPTEMBER has seen an alarming rise in the rounding up and detention of Afghan refugees. Pakistani authorities cite...
Whither justice?
01 Oct, 2023

Whither justice?

THE challenge is to ensure bestial tragedies are remembered. Two cases of femicide, involving men from Pakistan’s...