MADRAS, India -- If there is one man who can be held singularly responsible for nuclear proliferation, it has to be Abdul Qadeer Khan, known as the father of Pakistan's atomic bomb. Khan was a metallurgist before he became a nuclear businessman. That's what he was: He ran a "Nuclear Wal-Mart," according to a new book about him.
The tome, " Shopping for Bombs: Nuclear Proliferation, Global Insecurity and the Rise and Fall of the A.Q. Khan Network," by Gordon Corera, reads like a thriller.
Khan has been under house arrest in one of Islamabad's posh localities. Recently, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. A wave of sympathy for the 70-year-old scientist is now sweeping Pakistan: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz sent him flowers, and cricketer-cum-politician Imran Khan said the ailing Khan would be treated in the best cancer hospital in Lahore. Khan owns the hospital.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.