Pakistan Premier: Foreign Attacks Were ‘Counterproductive’
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan’s prime minister said yesterday that strikes by foreign forces were “counterproductive,” as officials said there was no warning about the latest American missile strike in the Pakistani northwest.
Meanwhile, militants briefly seized 300 boys at a school in northwest Pakistan yesterday, police said. The incident ended with the deaths of two suicide bombers; no children were harmed.
The missile strike Wednesday was part of a surge in American cross-border operations, and it was especially galling to Pakistanis because it came the same day an American military leader assured the nation’s leaders America respects Pakistan’s sovereignty.
Pakistan’s civilian leaders stressed diplomacy to resolve the mounting tensions with an anti-terror ally that has given the Muslim nation billions of dollars in aid.
In his statement, Prime Minister Gilani did not specifically mention Wednesday’s missile strike, though he spoke generally of strikes by foreign forces as being “counterproductive.”
“The U.S. government has been clearly told that there would be no compromise on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Pakistan,” he said.
