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Clinton Backs Pakistan as Bomb Toll Hits 90

Secretary of state says 'this is our struggle as well'

By the Associated Press

Posted Oct 28, 2009 9:34 AM CDT

(AP) – Offering sympathy for victims of today's terrorist bombing, Hillary Clinton praised Pakistan's offensive against extremists and pledged US support at a critical point in the country's history. "Pakistan is in the midst of a struggle against tenacious and brutal extremist groups who kill innocent people and terrorize communities," the secretary of state said, just hours after a car bomb killed more than 90 people and wounded more than 200 at a Peshawar market.

"This fight is not Pakistan's alone," Clinton said. "These extremists are committed to destroying what is dear to us as much as they are committed to destroying that which is dear to you and to all people. So this is our struggle as well." Appearing with her, Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi spoke to the attackers. "I want to address them," he said. "We will not buckle. We will fight you. We will fight you because we want peace and stability in Pakistan."

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton shakes hands with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton shakes hands with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.   (AP Photo)
People gather at the site of an explosion in Peshawar, Pakistan, today.
People gather at the site of an explosion in Peshawar, Pakistan, today.   (AP Photo)
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COMMENTS
Showing 1 of 1 comment
fancygapva
Oct 28, 2009 2:47 AM CDT
Not just their war says Hillary. Now we'll have three wars? Or will we leave Iraq and station ourselves on the Afghan border ready to descend into Pakistan now that Pakistan has been terrorized enough to ask for our help? If we are talking about wars for the safety of the region and the safety of this or any other industrialized nation, stabilizing nuclear Pakistan should come first on the agenda. How to do it? We shouldn't march in there looking like occupiers. We could have a joint command with their military, but half their army and intelligence services are on the side of the Taliban and many others are just plain corrupt. Maybe we should just offer to buy all the opium in Afghanistan that the Taliban can produce and leave them to their culture if they will withdraw? That would get the opium off the world market, keep the Taliban busy growing dope and we could move to closer diplomacy with Pakistan and help them secure their nukes and root out the bad apples from inside. We don't need to be heating things up anywhere in that region.

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