Is Pakistan Serious?

Pakistan's effort to hunt down suspected Taliban and al-Qaeda guerrillas in the rugged territory bordering Afghanistan scored a major success last week with a raid by the Pakistani army in the country's South Waziristan district. Eight suspected militants were killed and 18 more detainedall foreigners and "certainly terrorists," said military spokesman Major General Shaukat Sultan. "As a matter of policy, Pakistan is determined to root out terrorism from its soil."

But is it? Skeptics point out that Pakistan has a habit of announcing dramatic antiterror moves to coincide with high-level meetings with American officials. At the time of...