Enemy in Pakistan far from defeated: Petraeus

Noting that the recent success of Pakistan military against the Taliban and al-Qaeda has been encouraging, a top US army general has said that the enemy in Pakistan has been far from defeated.

Noting that the recent success of Pakistan military against the Taliban and al-Qaeda has been encouraging, a top US army general has said that the enemy in Pakistan has been far from defeated.

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"These encouraging developments notwithstanding, however, the enemy in Pakistan is far from defeated, and many extremist elements have yet to be engaged, particularly those that typically operate outside Pakistan's borders," Commander of the US Central Command General David Petraeus said.

Petraeus said that a number of developments in Pakistan over the past four and half months have been heartening.

The Pakistani government, clerics and people increasingly have united in support of military operations against the extremists operating inside Pakistan's borders. Indeed, Pakistan's leaders and people have come to see the Pakistani Taliban as a threat to their country's very existence, and this is significant, he said at the 91st annual American Legion Convention, Louisville, Kentucky.

"Robust Pakistani military operations in Swat Valley and in other districts of the Northwest Frontier Province have cleared militants from those areas.

"Operations in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas in recent months have resulted in the death of militant leader Baitullah Mehsud and a number of other important extremist group leaders," Petraeus said.