LAHORE: Authorities in Pakistan said that they were taking steps to keep a US consulate worker, imprisoned in a local jail for shooting two Pakistanis, safe from harm in a case that has unleashed a diplomatic storm.
US officials have expressed fears about the safety of Raymond Davis as anti-American sentiment has flared after he shot and killed two Pakistanis in Lahore in what he said was an attempted robbery last month.
Surveillance cameras monitor the area where Davis, who Washington insists is shielded by diplomatic immunity and must be released immediately, has been locked in a cell isolated from other prisoners, prison sources said.
A team of 36 unarmed guards, who Pakistani officials say have been specially screened, are standing watch in shifts of eight.
Outside the Kot Lakhpat jail in Lahore, where protesters have demanded Davis be publicly hanged, some 75 police officers, a team of provincial rangers and vehicles packed with elite forces are standing watch.
“We have taken maximum security measures to ensure his protection,” said Rana Sanaullah, law minister for Punjab province, where Lahore is located.
The heightened security underscores the charged nature of the Davis case, which has inflamed already strained ties between two nations who are supposed to be working together to stamp out militants attacking US soldiers in Afghanistan.
Last week the Lahore high court delayed a hearing on whether Davis had immunity until March 14, prolonging the diplomatic standoff between the two countries and stoking concerns for his safety.
There is good reason for worry in turbulent Pakistan, where rogue members of security forces have at times turned their weapons against government officials.
“Davis’ safety is a concern,” a US official said on condition of anonymity.
While some Pakistani officials have signalled they would like to back Davis’ immunity, the government has so far said local courts must decide.
