U.S. mounts pressure on Pak to act against terrorism on its soil

The United States has once again urged Pakistan to take actions to combat and delegitimize all terrorist groups operating on its soil.

US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner made the remarks while responding to a question about Washington's position on China blocking the ban called by India on Pakistan based Jamaat-ul-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed, whom the US has also designated as a terrorist.

Though Toner did not reply to the specific question, he said, "I would just say that we continue to urge Pakistan to take actions to combat and delegitimize all terrorist groups operating on its soil."

"We want to help Pakistan confront this terrorist threat, but we also want Pakistan also to go after those terrorists who seek and sometimes find safe haven on Pakistan territory," he said while acknowledging that Pakistan has suffered greatly at the hands of terrorists and violent extremists.

This comes as yesterday, after branding Jamaat-ul-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed as an avowed terrorist, the United States asserted that both him and the Lashkar-e-Toiba are designated by the Barack Obama-led Government and have the blood of several innocents on their hands.