Pakistan: GIs on cross-border raids will be shot

Abbas did not say when exactly the orders for Pakistani troops to open fire to prevent cross-border raids by U.S. troops were issued. He wouldn't discuss whether Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, who replaced Musharraf as army chief last year, personally took the decision or if the orders had been discussed with American officials.

The spokesman also played down suggestions that the instructions had been put into practice before dawn on Monday, when U.S. helicopters reportedly landed near Angoor Ada only to fly away after troops fired warning shots.

Abbas insisted no foreign troops had crossed the border and that "trigger-happy tribesmen" had fired the shots. Pakistani troops based nearby fired flares to see what was going on, he said.

The U.S. military in Afghanistan said none of its troops were involved.

In a rare public statement last week, Kayani said Pakistan's sovereignty would be defended "at all cost." Abbas said Pakistani officials had to consider public opinion, which is skeptical of American goals in the region and harbors sympathy for rebels fighting in the name of Islam.

"Please look at the public reaction to this kind of adventure or incursion," Abbas said. "The army is also an extension of the public and you can only satisfy the public when you match your words with your actions."

Defense Secretary Robert Gates was in Kabul on Tuesday to meet Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who has condemned the killing of Afghan civilians by foreign troops hunting Taliban insurgents. Karzai, however, backed last week's announcement that the United States would target militant havens in neighboring Pakistan.

The top U.S. military officer, Adm. Mike Mullen, landed in Pakistan to meet Kayani and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani.

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