Controversial father of Pakistan nuclear bomb dies at age 85

ISLAMABAD – Abdul Qadeer Khan, a arguable fig known arsenic the begetter of Pakistan’s atomic bomb, died Sunday aft a lengthy illness, the country's interior curate said. He was 85.

Khan launched Pakistan connected the way to becoming a atomic weapons powerfulness successful the aboriginal 1970s. Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad said helium died successful a infirmary Islamabad. He didn't elaborate.

Khan was mired successful contention that began adjacent earlier helium returned to Pakistan from the Netherlands successful the 1970s, wherever helium had worked astatine a atomic probe facility.

He was aboriginal accused of stealing the centrifuge uranium enrichment exertion from the Netherlands installation that helium would aboriginal usage to make Pakistan’s archetypal atomic weapon, according to probe done by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Khan, who held a doctorate successful metallurgical engineering from the Catholic University of Leuven successful Belgium, offered to motorboat Pakistan’s atomic weapons programme successful 1974 aft neighbour India conducted its archetypal “peaceful atomic explosion.”

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He reached retired to then-Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto offering exertion for Pakistan’s ain atomic weapons program. Still smarting from the 1971 nonaccomplishment of East Pakistan, which became Bangladesh, arsenic good arsenic the seizure of 90,000 Pakistani soldiers by India, Bhutto embraced the offer. He famously said: “We (Pakistanis) volition devour grass, adjacent spell hungry, but we volition person our ain (nuclear bomb).”

Since then, Pakistan has relentlessly pursued its atomic weapons programme successful tandem with India. Both are declared atomic weapons states aft they conducted tit-for-tat atomic weapons tests successful 1998.

Pakistan’s atomic programme and Khan’s engagement person agelong been the taxable of allegations and criticism.

Khan was accused by the U.S. of trading atomic secrets to neighbour Iran and to North Korea successful the 1990s aft Washington sanctioned Pakistan for its atomic weapons program. For 10 years during the Soviet concern of neighboring Afghanistan, successive U.S. presidents certified Pakistan was not processing atomic weapons. The certification was indispensable nether American instrumentality to let U.S. assistance to anti-communist rebels done Pakistan.

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But successful 1990, conscionable months aft the 1989 withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan, Washington slapped Pakistan with crippling sanctions ending each assistance to the country, including subject and humanitarian.

Pakistan was accused of selling atomic weapons exertion to North Korea successful speech for its No-Dong missiles susceptible of carrying atomic warheads. A 2003 Congressional Research Report said that portion it was hard to pinpoint the genesis of Pakistan's atomic practice with North Korea, it apt began successful the mid-1990s

At location successful Pakistan, Khan was heralded arsenic a leader and the begetter of the atomic bomb. Radical spiritual parties called him the begetter of the lone Islamic atomic bomb.

Khan was rejected by Pakistan's dictator President Gen. Pervez Musharraf aft 2001, erstwhile details of Khan's alleged income of atomic secrets came nether renewed scrutiny. Khan bitterly denounced Musharraf and his effort to region the authorities from his activities, ever denying helium engaged successful immoderate concealed selling oregon clandestine atomic weapons exertion exchanges.

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In caller years, Khan mostly lived retired of the nationalist oculus and tributes from chap scientists and Pakistani politicians began soon aft his death.

Prime Minister Imran Khan called him a “national icon,” whose atomic weapons programme "provided america information against an assertive overmuch larger atomic neighbor. For the radical of Pakistan helium was a nationalist icon."

Fellow idiosyncratic Dr. Samar Mubarakmand said Khan was a nationalist treasure who defied Western attempts to stifle Pakistan's atomic program.

“It was unthinkable for the westbound that Pakistan would marque immoderate breakthrough but yet they had to admit Dr. Khan’s accomplishment of making the country's atomic weapons,” helium said.

Khan passed astatine the KRL Hospital successful the superior Islamabad aft a protracted illness. He was to beryllium buried with authorities honors Sunday day astatine a mosque successful the capital.

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Associated Press writer Zarar Khan contributed to this report

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