The United States has expressed dismay at the reports of an attack on a school and a church in Kashmir and Punjab. The US Ambassador in India Timothy J. Roemer has said that his country supports the appeal of the local authorities for calm and an end to the violence. In a statement issued in New Delhi today, Mr. Roemer said that extremists in all countries seek to sow hatred rather than peaceful co-existence. Strongly condemning the desecration of the copy of Quran by tearing pages from it by a misguided individual in the US, Mr. Roemer said that the act of one individual is not representative of America and American values. He said that the deliberate destruction of any holy book is an abhorrent act. He said, the commitment to religious tolerance and religious freedom will continue to be a guiding principle of the United States. He said that the Islam has its rightful and equal place in America along with other religions and will always be so.