LAHORE – One year after the US Navy SEALs killed Osama bin Laden by attacking country’s sovereignty in Abbottabad on May 2, 2011, Pakistan is still bleeding and burning at both ends, thanks to Islamabad for playing frontline role in the so-called war on terror for a thankless ally, the US. In the wake of Al-Qaeda Chief’s killing, the abysmal security situation deteriorated further last year as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other Al-Qaeda off-shoots unleashed a string of coordinated reprisal attacks across the country. The revenge included some high-profile attacks like ambush on Pakistan Navy’s air base, PNS-Mehran, and target killing of a Saudi diplomat in Karachi, twin suicide bombing of Frontier Constabulary’s (FC) headquarters in Charsadda, and a car suicide bombing of Crime Investigation Department’s (CID) police station in Peshawar. In 2011, at least 44 suicidal attacks took place, which left 625 people dead and injured 1386 others across Pakistan. This year so far, at least 86 people have been killed and 165 others injured in no less than 14 suicide bomb blast all over the country, according to credible estimates. Country’s security forces still remained the direct target of terrorism and Pakistan, despite all this, remained committed to the cause of fighting the menace of terrorism. Pakistan deserves to be appreciated for all sacrifices and sufferings for playing a positive role the in ugly mess created by international war on terrorism, the Obama Administration continues hurling threats at Pakistan to force Islamabad to open a new front against the militants in the north-west. During the last 10 years, Pakistan has lost 35,000 people including 6000 security personnel, much more than the combined effort of allied forces in Afghanistan. The country has suffered a loss of over $50-70 billion directly and indirectly since it joined the war on terror, imposed in the region by the United States of America. In 2010, at least 58 suicide bomb blasts killed more than 1153 people while wounded 2954 others, according to Pakistanbodycount website. In 2009, the worst of any year, 2,586 terrorist, insurgent and sectarian-related incidents were reported that killed 3,021 people and injured 7,334, according to the “Pakistan Security Report 2009” published by Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies (PIPS). These casualties figure 48 percent higher as compared to 2008. On the other hand, the rate of suicide attacks surged by one third to 87 bombings that killed 1,300 people and injured 3,600.Defense and political experts say that the US leadership was so flabbergasted with the information of a high-value target like OBL in Pakistan that they forgot all norms of diplomacy and all the requirements of a sovereign state. “The US Navy SEAL’s attack was totally unlawful and illegitimate. The wisdom failed to guide the US arrogance that in the international politics such actions amount to intimidation of other independent states and that the reaction might be very perilous,” an Islamabad-based defense expert said. Fortunately, he said, Pakistani side kept their cool despite internal tumult and nothing happened, on the other hand, US leadership left no stone unturned in converting the crisis into a world war scenario. After the OBL episode, the US and its western allies have begun to exploit the event so as to pressurize Pakistan for “doing more” in the war against terror. According to security experts, American pressure on Pakistan to open a new front against Haqqani network in North Waziristan Agency would be over-whelming. The recent provocative statements by US ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan C. Crocker alleging Pakistan for its intelligence failure to unearth the “Kabul attacks” has done an irretrievable damage to the already fractured US-Pakistan ties. The diplomatic analysts and experts believe that this development has a potential to further slowdown the cooperation between Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) that is already tense between the armies of the two countries. The Raymond Davis issue in which a CIA contractor killed two Pakistanis in Lahore, the unilateral raid by the US Navy Seals on OBL’s compound and the November 26 NATO air strike on two Pakistani army border check posts in Mohmand tribal area, which left 24 Pakistani troops dead and wounded 13 others, are a few examples of US aggression and hostility against Pakistan. Defense strategists in South Asia feel a pulse of increasing anxiety in Pakistan about how the war ends in Afghanistan and what implications this will have for regional stability. They believe that Pakistan is a linchpin in rooting out terrorism from the region and Washington can never succeed without Islamabad. Pakistan is facing major challenges including an economic and fiscal crisis, a growing insurgency within its borders, unrest in Balochistan and chronic energy shortages. The US needs to help Pakistan overcome these challenges. Instead of hurling threats at Pakistan, America should apologize for violating Pakistan’s sovereignty during Abbottabad operation, drone attacks, and especially attack on Salala border posts. No matter what possibly happens between the two sides, independent observers believe that neither side can afford to go to extremes. On the first anniversary of the Abbottabad incident, Islamabad pledges to continue cooperating with Washington in war on terror but the US at the same time continues violation of Pakistan’s territorial integrity. This is not in line with the cooperation, the two countries had agreed to maintain in countering terrorism a decade ago.