Pakistan facing difficult time, says US

Seized photos and passport of Spanish citizen Raquel Burgos Garcia, recovered during military operations against Taliban militants are displayed by Pakistani forces on a table at the Sherwangi Tor village in South Waziristan, on Thursday. The authenticity of the documents could not be verified. Garcia Burgos, whose family in Madrid has no news of her since 2001, according to the Spanish press, is the wife of Amer Azizi, a Moroccan who lived in Spain and is sought by justice for his alleged involvement in al-Queda linked terrorist attacks. Photo: AP.

As Taliban militants have increased their attacks across Pakistan - resulting in deaths of scores of innocent civilians - the United States today conceded that it is a “difficult time” for the country.

“This is a remarkably difficult time for Pakistan.

They’re dealing with brutal terrorists and indigenous insurgents,” State Department spokesman Ian Kelly told reporters at his daily news conference.

Referring to the series of terror attacks inside Pakistan in last few weeks, Mr. Kelly said: “We have seen over the last couple of weeks in the run-up to and during the operation in North and South Waziristan an increase in brutal bombings and targeted assassinations.”

The Obama Administration recognises that this is a very difficult time for Pakistan, he said.

“But we also recognise that the fight that they are involved in right now is very much a common fight, this fight against retrograde extremists who want to bring their country back into the dark ages,” he said.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton went to Pakistan to show that the US stands with those in Pakistan who are fighting this fight.

“This is a fight that we’re also fighting. I would not draw too much out of the fact that there was a bomb on the day that she arrived. There have been bombs, unfortunately, going off pretty consistently. It’s just an indication of the seriousness of this common challenge we have,” he said.