American Qaeda figure says U.S. still runs Pakistan

DUBAI (Reuters) - American al Qaeda militant Adam Gadahn blasted Pakistan's new leaders as U.S. puppets in a war against Islamic militants, in an Internet video posted on Saturday.

"The Pakistan Army ... and the professional spreaders of lies at their service are trying to make us believe that the state of Pakistan has turned a new leaf (after former President Pervez Musharraf left power)," Gadahn said in the video posted on Islamist websites.

"These are not the leaders Pakistan wants and deserves. They are the leaders America wants and preserves in order to reach its policy objectives, hinder the jihad against the Crusaders in Afghanistan ... and ensure that nuclear-capable Pakistan remains docile, contained and sharia-free," Gadahn said.

"Their battle has always been and remains to be America's battle, not Pakistan's. And this battle (against Islamic militants) is what has brought Pakistan to the verge of break-up," he said.