Pakistan, July 4 -- The United States has reaffirmed its support for Pakistan's right to defend itself against terrorist attacks, a diplomatic signal that comes as Islamabad confronts renewed militant violence at home and rising security tensions along the Afghan border.

"The Pakistani people have suffered greatly at the hands of terrorists," the US State Department said, adding that Washington "supports Pakistan's right to defend itself against terrorist attacks."

The remarks place the State Department's position at the centre of the latest debate over Pakistan's counterterrorism response and have come on the heels of the latest operation undertaken by Pakistan's armed forces along the Afghan border. Information Minister Attaullah Tara...