| GEO Pakistan | | Bush allows raids into Pakistan: US official | Updated at: 1108 PST, Thursday, September 11, 2008
 WASHINGTON: US President George W. Bush has secretly approved orders allowing US forces to conduct ground operations in Pakistan without that government's prior approval, a report said Wednesday citing senior US officials.
A US daily reported that the July move allowing Special Operations forces to carry out assaults within the borders of a key "war on terror" ally marked a turn for the Bush administration, which has struggled with Islamabad over how to combat Al-Qaeda and a resurgent Taliban.
"The situation in the tribal areas is not tolerable," a senior American official told the paper on condition of anonymity. "We have to be more assertive. Orders have been issued."
According to the newspaper, US officials say they will notify Pakistan when the United States conducts operations on the country's territory, but that they will not ask for permission.
The newspaper reported that US officials have been debating for months whether to authorize such forays against Islamic militants in Pakistan, following US intelligence warnings that Al-Qaeda and other militant groups were consolidating their hold on northwestern Pakistan.
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