Two weeks of suicide bombings and other attacks have shaken Pakistan. The interior minister says, "The enemy has started a guerrilla war."

Pakistani soldiers surround buildings damaged by a suicide bombing in Peshawar Friday

On Thursday, President Obama signed into law a civilian aid bill for Pakistan. It offers seven and a half billion dollars over five years to improve health, education and security.

But in Pakistan, opposition parties and the powerful military have strongly criticized the legislation. Last week the military objected to language suggesting that it supported militant groups.

Now, the civilian government in Islamabad says the United States has taken steps to ease Pakistani concerns.

American lawmakers said the language of the aid package could not be changed. But on Wednesday, they told Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi in Washington that it does not place any conditions on Pakistan.

The United States considers Pakistan an important ally in the global fight against terrorism. One issue related to that fight is how to deal with the growing threat of terrorism from within the United States.

Robert Mueller, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, spoke last month at a Senate hearing. He said officials have discovered a number of plots in recent months involving "homegrown extremists." He also expressed concern about Americans and other Westerners traveling to Pakistan and Somalia for terrorist training.

A police department photo of Najibullah Zazi arriving in New York City to face terrorism charges

Najibullah Zazi denies any link to terrorism. He came to the United States ten years ago and is a legal permanent resident from Afghanistan. He was arrested in Colorado where he drove an airport bus.

This week, there were reports that he had contact with al-Qaida leadership. Intelligence officials said the head of al-Qaida's operations in Afghanistan used a middleman to communicate with him.

Attorney General Eric Holder has called the case one of the most serious threats since the attacks of September eleventh, two thousand one.

In another case, federal officials are investigating the disappearances of more than twenty young Somali men. They were living in the state of Minnesota. They may have joined al-Shabab, an anti-government militia in Somalia tied to al-Qaida.

Shirwa Ahmed was a naturalized American citizen living in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He became the first known American suicide bomber last October when he blew himself up in Somalia.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Bob Doughty.