Raising alarm: Al Qaeda outreach from Pakistan feared

State Department official renews calls on Pakistan to take action against militants.

WASHINGTON: Al Qaeda still has the capacity to stage international attacks from Pakistan despite US forces’ killing of Osama bin Laden, a US official said on Friday.

Appearing before Congress, State Department official Shari Villarosa renewed calls on Pakistan to take action against militants, particularly in northwestern areas where militants enjoy a safe haven.

“Although the AQ (al Qaeda) core is clearly weaker, it retains the capability to conduct regional and transnational attacks” from Pakistan, Villarosa said in written testimony to the House Committee on Homeland Security. Villarosa pointed to the al Qaeda linkages of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and the Haqqani network. “We will do our part and we look to the government of Pakistan to take decisive steps in the days ahead,” Villarosa said.



Published in The Express Tribune, June 4^th, 2011.