THE DEATH OF OSAMA BIN LADEN: ; Pakistan relations with US touchy; Rockefeller notes country where al-Qaida chief hid has nuclear weapons

Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., a key member of the SenateIntelligence Committee for much of the past decade, said Monday thatOsama bin Ladens death at a mansion in Pakistan tells you somethingabout the United States relationship with the country. Testyrelations with Pakistan and allegations that Pakistans intelligenceservice is supporting terrorist groups have led some to questionwhether officials there could or should have known where bin Ladenwas. Ultimately, U.S. forces killed bin Laden after a months-longintelligence operation determined he was hiding out in a mansion inAbbottabad, a relatively affluent town with a military presence. TheWhite House described the mansion, built in 2005, as anextraordinarily unique compound a $1 million complex with physicalsecurity measures but no telephone or Internet service. I mean, itjust tells you something, Rockefeller said. He was a man that neverslept in the same place, then eight months in this mansion which isidentifiable in every single respect? Pakistan-U.S. relations areparticularly knotty, Rockefeller said. I think whats going to beinteresting is going to be the effect on Pakistan relations becauseI think of Iraq and Afghanistan and Libya, the question of Pakistanis by far the most important, he said. They have the nuclearweapons. Rockefeller said the death of bin Laden, which wasannounced late Sunday evening by President Barack Obama, was worthcelebrating but bin Laden had become less relevant and more asymbol. Its something to celebrate in a sense no, its something tocelebrate, period, Rockefeller said during an appearance Monday inCharleston. But its something which is also going to make life alittle bit more dangerous for us for the next period of time. Headded, The guys been carrying a cyanide tablet for eight months, Ithink he was sort of becoming less relevant I mean, you cant saythat, but Im saying that in literal terms, in terms of al-Qaida asan anti-American, anti-Saudi movement. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., who like Rockefeller was in town for a transportationconference, told a room of transit officials from across the countryshe had a little pick-up to my step following the news that binLaden was dead. In an interview after her remarks, she said she hadspent the past hours remembering the victims of the Sept. 11 attacksfor which bin Laden has been held at long last responsible. Shealso praised American determination. Its awesome. It just shows theworld we are a force to be reckoned with, Capito said. While it tooka long time, we never gave up. Contact writer Ry Rivard atry.rivard@dailymail.com or 304-348-1796.