Pakistan government may have sanctioned Saleem Shehzad's death: Mullen

Washington: U.S. military official said the biggest Admiral Mike Mullen, said on Thursday that the Pakistani government has authorized the killing of Pakistani journalist, expressing deep concern over the attack. 

In response to a question about media reports that Islamabad sanctions or agreed to the killing of the journalist: "I have not seen anything that would be written this report."
He said he was concerned about the incident and suggested that other journalists have suffered a similar fate in the past.
"His (death) is not the first. For any reason, they were used historically as a means," said Mullen told reporters at the Pentagon event, the Press Association.

Recognizing that Pakistani officials have denied that the government any role in the killing of Saleem Shahzad, Mullen said in an episode raised troubling questions about the current path of the country.
"It's not the way forward. It's a way to communicate frankly spiral in the wrong direction," said Mullen, who held several meetings with their Pakistani counterparts during his term as Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff of the staff.
Mullen's remarks are certain to exacerbate already strained relations between the uneasy allies after a U.S. raid north of Islamabad in May that killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden,
The New York Times, citing U.S. officials, said on Monday that a joint force between the intelligence services (ISI) agency, ordered the killing of Shahzad to muzzle criticism.
And rejected the ISI strongly such reports as the allegations "baseless."
Gold Shahzad, who was working for the Italian news agency and the location of the Hong Kong news registered and had been informed about Islamic militants infiltrating the army, went missing on its way to a television program and his body was found May 31 south of the capital, bearing signs of torture.
Shahzad disappeared two days after writing the investigation report in Asia Times Online, saying al-Qaeda carried out the recent attack on a naval air base in retaliation for the arrest of Navy officials, held on suspicion of links to al Qaeda.
The Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has ordered an investigation into the kidnapping and murder, and pledged to bring the perpetrators to justice.
Citing the escalation of tension over the past year, Mullen said the relationship with Pakistan is under pressure is normal.
Mullen said even before the raid to bin Laden from the one side, and relations became tense, especially over the arrest of the contractor and the Central Intelligence Agency in Pakistan who has been charged with double murder before being released at the end.
"So we were during the period of time is very, very difficult. Washington is committed to maintaining that relationship, but we know that under great pressure at the moment and we need to see our way through it," he said.
High-ranking army officer, who is due to step down at the end of September after four years, and also said that the U.S. military presence in Pakistan is once again a large scale at the request of Islamabad.