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THE U.S. MISSILE strike that killed 30 suspected militants in a tribal area of Pakistan was the fourth such strike since President Barack Obama came to office.
For all its proclaimed reassessment of the fight against al-Qaida and Islamist extremism, the administration appears intent on continuing a policy of decapitation of the terrorist leadership. It has proved remarkably successful. The drones have hit houses where al-Qaida’s leaders were known to be meeting, killing several senior commanders, disrupting operations and increasing the pressure on them to leave the tribal areas that had sheltered them.
Pakistan has denounced these attacks, calling them counterproductive and likely to increase support for al-Qaida and the Taliban.
The beleaguered government has faltered in its attempt to halt this extremist tide, however. It has tried therefore to appease opinion, repeatedly denying that Washington is running any operations, open or covert, on Pakistani territory. The denials might be a necessary subterfuge as the government tries to distance itself from the U.S. operation to defeat the Taliban while offering the logistic support needed. That is welcome evidence of pragmatism.
Much less welcome, however, is the deal just concluded with the leaders of the Swat uprising allowing the introduction of Sharia and bringing the rule of Islamic law to within 80 miles of the capital.
The government denies it has made concessions to militants or that the deal with the pro-Taliban cleric Sufi Mohammed is a sign of weakness. Few are convinced. It must soon decide, if it is to survive, that appeasement does not work. Extremism must be defeated, by drones, by the army and by the law.

It has tried … to appease
opinion,
repeatedly denying that Washington is running any operations, open or
covert, on Pakistani territory.