Abdul "Káder" Chán :: Something smarter than us is going to emerge

Abdul Qadeer Khan played the key role in developing Pakistan's nuclear military capability, which culminated in successful tests in 1998. Coming shortly after similar tests by India, his work helped seal Pakistan's place as the world's 7th nuclear power and sparked national jubilation.

In January 2004, Khan confessed to having been involved in a clandestine international network of nuclear weapons technology proliferation from Pakistan to Libya, Iran and North Korea. On February 5, 2004, the President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, announced that he had pardoned Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, who is widely seen as a national hero.

In July 2007, two senior government officials told the Associated Press that restrictions on Khan had been eased several months earlier, and that Khan could meet friends and relatives either at his home or elsewhere in Pakistan. The officials said that a security detail continued to control his movements.