The attack on a police academy which killed nine comes just weeks after a visiting Sri Lankan cricket team was attacked. Lahore, Punjab province's largest city, has experienced two high-profile terrorist attack in a very short time span, proving that militants are not limited to the lawless Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP).

In an earlier post, "Pakistan dilemma," I discussed Pakistani government's decision to enter into a peace agreement with Taliban militants based in Swat Valley. The militants have established a Sharia court there and govern in the same authoritarian way as they did back in Afghanistan.

The decision to allow the militants to flourish in Swat Valley has hurt Pakistan's chances of defeating terrorism and getting rid of the Taliban and their al Qaeda friends. Why will the militants fear the government or the security forces when they see that, with enough pressure, the government is ready to agree to their demands?

President Obama has promised to overhaul America's policy on Pakistan and Afghanistan. He needs to stop pouring billions into Pakistan when the country's government is caving under the terrorists' demands. Terrorism in Pakistan can be defeated only when the country's government grows a spine.

Bhumika Ghimire