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US urges Pak to restrain militants

The United States has called on Pakistan to encourage restraint by militant groups involved in the killing of civilians in Kashmir.

Dozens of intruders defied an agreement to withdraw from the Indian side of the Line of Control yesterday.

State department spokesman James Rubin noted that ''these are only the most recent of a number of attacks against civilians, both Hindu and Muslim... We are not in a position to make an independent determination of responsibilities for these killings.

''We do believe, however, that militant groups with leaders and infrastructure in Pakistan are among those connected with killings of civilians in India and Kashmir,'' such as the Harakat-ul-Ansar, which Washington designated a terrorist group in 1997, he said.

''We call on the government of Pakistan and all others with influence on these groups to press them toward restraint,'' he said.

Despite these comments, he said the United States did not consider the cross-border incursions a violation of an agreement Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharief made with President Bill Clinton on July 4 to withdraw Pakistan-backed forces from the Indian side of the Line of Control.

''No, I think on the contrary, what we've said is that we believe that the steps necessary have been taken to follow through on the commitments that Prime Minister Sharief made,'' Rubin said.

UNI

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