''Blood money'' could be a solution to Davis row: US p

[Waqas 48]

WASHINGTON: An Islamic ritual for resolving disputes known as ''blood money'' could be a solution to solve Raymond Davis issue, a Washington based newspaper reported.But this approach would require a prominent Islamic intermediary - perhaps from Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates - who would invite relatives of the two men Davis killed to the Gulf. Payment to the victims'' families could then be negotiated quietly.A senior Pakistani official in Washington outlined this "blood money" concept in a conversation Monday. An official of Inter-Services Intelligence directorate also endorsed this approach; he said it had the advantage of meshing with the dispute-resolution customs of the Middle East and South Asia.Pakistan also wants a pledge by the CIA that it will not conduct "unilateral" operations within its borders, like those in which Davis was allegedly involved. The Pakistanis say they want to be treated in intelligence matters like other allies of the United States, such as Britain and France, or, closer to home, Egypt, Israel and Jordan.Both sides want to deal with the problem before it moves to the courts on March 14; a legal proceeding would embarrass the parties involved.The paperwork for Davis''s visa and work assignment is fuzzy, at best. He was carrying three different ID cards when he was arrested. He wasn''t included on a Jan. 25 US list of people needing to be registered with the Foreign Office; his name is said to have been added within a day or two after his arrest. It''s still not clear just what he was doing in Lahore, or whether he may have worked as a Defense Department contractor before shifting to the CIA.For now, the one certainty is that the CIA and ISI would like to resolve this issue quietly, with outside help, if necessary - before it gets any worse. If mediation fails and the case goes to court, says one Pakistani, it will be an "atomic bomb."