Why we should worry about Pakistan

The footage the Guardian have of a girl being flogged by Taliban fighters in Swat valley, Pakistan, is a difficult watch.  As one man hits her, she screams out and begs “Either kill me or stop it now”.  Quite simply, it’s sickening, and utterly indicative of the barbarism of these Islamists. 

It’s indicative, too, of how entrenched the Taliban are in Pakistan.  According to the Guardian’s source, they are encouraging the circulation of this footage as some sort of statement of intent.  Given recent events in Pakistan, you sense that the Taliban’s influence in that country is spreading, just as this video is spreading from mobile phone to mobile phone.  And that’s something we in the West should certainly worry about.