JUNE 2: The State Department spokesman Richard Boucher condemed the attacks on worshippers in a Karachi mosque. He said, “we agree with President Musharraf that extremism and militancy lead to violence and despair rather than hope and prosperity.”

He said U.S. is concerned about “the pointless violence against religious communities as a direct attack on Pakistan’s effort to promote religious moderation and tolerance.” To a question on who could be behind the violence and about possible al Qaeda involvement, Boucher said: “I don’t think we really have any information like that. There are local organizations and leaders that have been promoting the violence or the demonstrations. We’ve been concerned about the violence aspect of that, not the political aspect of that.”

–– Vasantha Arora