Gilani does not think Osama is in Pakistan

Pakistan prime minister Yusuf Raza Gilani said on Thursday he did not think al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was hiding in his country and called for more clarity on US plans to boost troop levels in Afghanistan.

Gilani was speaking at a joint news conference with British prime minister Gordon Brown who last week called on Pakistan to do more to crack down on al Qaeda and to find bin Laden.

"I doubt the information which you are giving is correct because I don't think Osama bin Laden is in Pakistan," Gilani said when asked about efforts to track down the al Qaeda leader.

US president Barack Obama said this week he was ordering 30,000 more troops into Pakistan's neighbour Afghanistan to counter a resurgent Taliban.

Obama said a cancer had taken root in Pakistan's border region with Afghanistan and promised US help to end it.

Gilani said Obama had discussed the Afghan plans with Pakistan's president Asif Ali Zardari but that Pakistan was still seeking more details.

"Regarding the new policy, we are carefully examining it. We have already issued a statement through the foreign office and we are looking into how we will be able to implement it and we need more clarity on it as well".