July 13, 2007	Friday	Jamadi-us-Sani 27, 1428

WASHINGTON, July 12: US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher told a congressional panel on Thursday that the raiding of the Lal Masjid (Red Mosque) in Islamabad was a “very positive” expression of the government’s desire to combat extremism.

“It is a very positive expression that he is serious about dealing with the problem of extremism and that he has popular support to do that,” he told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

Mr Boucher, who looks after the South Asian affairs at the State Department, also told the congressional panel that Washington gave $100 million a month to the Pakistan Army for monitoring the turbulent Pak-Afghan border.

He strongly defended the Bush administration’s decision to work with General Musharraf, saying that the goals of the Pakistani leader “are compatible with our goals” in Pakistan.

“We support President Musharraf but that is part of our overall support to Pakistan,” he said.

Speaking on the subject “Pakistan at the Crossroads; Afghanistan in the Balance,” Mr Boucher recalled that the Red Mosque was built in 1965 but during the 20 years it grew into a centre of extremist ideologies.