Currently, Pakistani forces are attacking the Taliban in the Swat Valley region. This counterattack started a little more than week ago, after the Taliban infiltrated neighboring regions dangerously close to the capital city of Islamabad. Not so coincidentally, the president of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari is meeting with the presidents of the United States and Afghanistan. So the question is, after 8 years or so, will Pakistan finally get serious about fighting the Taliban and driving out Al Qaeda? Or is this simply a temporary operation meant to make Obama feel justified in offering more billions in aid to Pakistan?

While the Pakistani army proceeds, we can expect the Taliban and Al Qaeda to launch attacks in Pakistani cities. Hopefully, Pakistani forces can stop terrorism before it happens, but the fact is that the cease-fire agreement between the government and the Taliban gave them ample time to set up sleeper cells throughout Pakistan. If terrorism becomes a reality, the question will be whether Zardari’s government can afford suicide bombs going off in major cities or will he back off the attack? Given Zardari’s low popularity, the ensuing political instability may bring an end to Pakistan’s offensive against the terrorists. America should do everything within its power to back up the Pakistani counterterrorism efforts, otherwise these recent gains will be reversed.

This assumes that Pakistan’s leadership isn’t just playing games… if they are playing around, then they might one day get bitten by the very snakes that they’ve raised. If that happens and Pakistan falls into extremist hands, God help us all.

-AG