Kerry: Taliban arrest due to US-Pakistan effort

[February 16, 2010]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sen. John Kerry says the capture of the Taliban's top military commander is proof of a "stronger cooperative effort" between the United States and Pakistan.

The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee says the arrest of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is a signal that Pakistan will pursue militants "who engage in violent extremist acts" against its people.

Baradar was arrested 10 days ago in a joint CIA-Pakistani operation in Pakistan, according to Pakistani and U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release such sensitive information.

Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat, is in Islamabad for a meeting with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari. He told CBS' "The Early Show" on Tuesday that Pakistan's government now knows that "this fight is their fight."

[Associated Press]

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