US State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland has said that the degree to which the Pakistani people turned against Taliban after the attack on Malala Yousafzai helps their government to go after them (Taliban).
She was asked during the briefing on Friday whether the condemnation across cross-sections of the Pakistani society against Taliban and militancy after the attack on Malala in Swat could be termed as a turning point in the fight against extremism in the country. She said this was indeed the silver lining of the tragic incident.
She said this would help the Pakistani government in going after the extremists with popular support. “We have seen in the past that when the Taliban commit truly heinous and outrageous acts like this, it galvanises popular opinion against them, not only in major cities, but also in those towns and neighbourhoods where they plot and hide,” she stated while referring to other terrorist activities in Pakistan during the last few years.
Nuland said that they had yet to hear from the Pakistani government about the US offer of treatment facilities for Malala Yousafzai. “We are obviously in contact with the government of Pakistan about what might be needed but I don’t have anything to announce at this stage,” she said.
She refused to answer a question about Imran Khan’s drive against drone attacks in Pakistan and his announcement to take it to the next level in the US. “We respect the right of peaceful protests, but I am not going to comment at all on intelligence matters,” she remarked.
