The CIA says it believes that Al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden is alive and still hiding in Pakistan and the US spy agency hopes to close on to him as Taliban and other militant groups shielding him crack under pressure of Pakistan army offensive.
US intelligence chief Leon Panetta said the information his agency had, indicated Laden was in Pakistan and finding him remains one of CIA's top priorities.
For the hunt for Laden, labelled world's most wanted man, Panetta, who was talking to reporters after a speech in the Congress, said CIA had increased the number of officers, agents and local informants to provide information in Pakistan.
"We have number of people and assets on the ground in Pakistan who are providing us information that we need to go after bin Laden," the CIA director said.
Bin Laden has eluded a US manhunt since the terror attacks on September 11, 2001, but appears on issued audio and videotapes over the years demonstrating he is still alive.
"Our hopes is that the Pakistanis move in militarily, combined with our operations, we may be able to have a better chance to get him," Panetta said.
He also said Al-Qaida "remains the most serious security threat" to the United States and its leaders.
India vs Pakistan: Players To Watch Out For In Upcoming Women's Asia Cup Clash India vs Pakistan: Smriti Mandhana, Harmanpreet Kaur Start Women's Asia Cup Title Defence Watch: Amid Criticism, Viral Video Shows Babar Azam's Struggles Against 18-Year-Old Pacer In Nets World's Largest Isolated Tribe Makes Rare Appearance In New Footage Madhya Pradesh's CBI Move: Agency Needs Written Consent To Probe Cases Why BJP Lost Lok Sabha Polls In Uttar Pradesh - 6 Reasons In Party Report OpenAI Unveils Cheaper Small AI Model GPT-4o Mini Man Insulted By Employer's Son Takes Revenge, Robs Him Off Rs 3.5 Crore Norton Motorcycles To Be Launched In India; Six Motorcycles Announced For Global Markets Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.