Scientist pleads for forgiveness over nuclear leaks

The founder of Pakistan’s nuclear programme asked President General Pervez Musharraf for forgiveness today for spreading weapons secrets to Iran, Libya and North Korea, the government said.

Abdul Qadeer Khan requested to be forgiven in a “mercy petition” to Musharraf, considering the services he had rendered to Pakistan’s nuclear programme, the government said.

The president told him the “entire nation had been severely traumatised” by the revelations of proliferation.

Khan “accepts full responsibility for all the proliferation activities, which were conducted by him during the period in which he was at the helm of affairs at Khan Research Laboratories,” the government said. Khan founded the lab in the 1970s and headed it until retiring in 2001.

Khan told state-run PTV in an interview that Musharraf had been “extremely kind and

understanding”.

It was the first public statement by Khan since the investigation into the proliferation allegations began more than two months ago.

Khan was sacked as a government adviser on Saturday, and officials said he had confessed in a written statement to selling nuclear technology.

A friend of the scientist said that Khan told him he gave nuclear weapons technology to other countries with the full knowledge of top army officials, including Musharraf.

Khan has been told by authorities to stay at his Islamabad home where he is guarded with tight security.

A government statement issued after the meeting with Musharraf said Khan realised his proliferation activities, which were in violation of different Pakistani laws, “could have seriously jeopardised Pakistan’s nuclear capability and put the nation at risk”.

“Khan expressed his regrets and said that he is likely to make a statement to the nation,” the government said.

The statement said that the president would consult with the National Command Authority that controls Pakistan’s nuclear assets before taking a final decision on Khan’s plea for mercy.

Previously, the government has promised to take legal action against anyone proved of wrongdoing. However, analysts say a public prosecution could prove embarrassing to the government if it implicates top military figures.