Peshawar attack, a chilling reminder of militants striking ability: NYT

NEW YORK - Monday’s brutal and well coordinated assault on the US consulate in Peshawar, in which six Pakistanis were killed and 20 others wounded and the suicide attack targeting a political rally in Dir, in which over 40 people were killed, reminds that the Taliban is alive and kicking and can still strike at will across the country.

The Pakistan Army’s offensive in the lawless tribal regions along the Afghan border had succeeded in bringing a brief lull in bloodshed over the past few months, but Monday’s terror attacks clearly suggests that the extremists are not down and out, as being claimed by security forces.

“The assault is a chilling reminder that the militants are still able to strike at prominent targets in Pakistan,” The New York Times said.

Experts believe the ‘multipronged’ attack on the US consulate was a desperate attempt by the extremists to demonstrate that they are still active and ready to inflict damage.

“They are trying to demonstrate that they are still alive and kicking,” the newspaper quoted a Pakistani a defense analyst, Hasan Askari Rizvi, as saying.

The American consulate is in a busy area in the main part of Peshawar, the capital city of the restive North West Frontier Province (NWFP).

Peshawar, which was tormented almost daily by bomb strikes until recently, remains a vulnerable target.

“It is very easily accessible. From tribal area you can walk right into Peshawar,” Rizvi said.

This was the second ‘direct’ terror attack on a US establishment in Pakistan. In 2002, extremists had targeted the Karachi consulate, killing more than 10 people, none of then Americans. (ANI)