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At Least 17 Killed in Miranshah Drone Strike

by AFP
Courtesy U.S. Air Force.

Courtesy U.S. Air Force

Pakistan’s Foreign Office condemns drone strike, urges U.S. to end the program.

A U.S. drone attack struck a compound of the Al Qaeda-linked Haqqani network in Pakistan’s northwestern tribal belt early Wednesday, killing at least 17 militants, according to Pakistani officials.

Security officials said that Afghan and Pakistani militants were among the dead at the compound in the town of Miranshah, but that there was no immediate confirmation of any high-value target.

Unmanned aircraft fired four missiles into the compound in the main market area of the main town of North Waziristan, which is Pakistan’s most notorious hub of Islamist militants. U.S. drone strikes are rarely reported in built-up areas of the semiautonomous tribal belt and officials said the aircraft flew over the market area for hours before striking.

“Death toll in drone strike has risen to 17,” said a security official based in North Waziristan. Officials had overnight said four militants were killed.

Intelligence officials confirmed the toll and said the compound had belonged to militants from the Haqqani network, which the United States has blamed for some of the deadliest and most high-profile attacks on Western and government targets in Afghanistan.

It was the deadliest U.S. drone strike reported in Pakistan since 18 insurgents were killed on the border between North Waziristan and the tribal district of Orakzai on Oct. 11, 2012. It was also the second drone attack reported inside Pakistan since Nawaz Sharif was sworn in as prime minister in June.

The Pakistani government on Wednesday condemned the drone strike as a violation of sovereignty, as it does routinely after each attack is reported. “The government of Pakistan has consistently maintained that drone strikes are counterproductive, entail loss of innocent civilian lives, and have human rights and humanitarian implications,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.

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1 comment

Azmat July 5, 2013 - 12:06 am

Nawaz Sharif this is your chance to be known in the pages of history books as either an effective leader or a coward. Send our airforce to intercept these murderous drones violating our airspace. We have the capability to remove them. Step up to the plate and defend your country.

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