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US drones attack kills 14 in NWA
Sherry condemns missile strike
Tariq Saeed
Peshawar—The US led NATO forces operating in Afghanistan continued
to add to their score of innocent killings in Pakistan as yet
another missile attack by the US drones in North Waziristan Agency
Friday morning left up to 14 people dead and injured many others.
Reports reaching here said the suspected US pilot-less planes or the
predators in their fresh offensive eliminated at least 14 people on
the pretext of targeting militants when the missile strike destroyed
what they claimed an Al-Qaeda training camp in village Kamshaam on
Pak Afghan border in North Waziristan Agency. Officials confirmed.
Sources and the locals say as many as four missiles were fired at
the camp, in Kamshaam village, some 35 kilometers south of Miranshah
in North Waziristan province which played havoc in the area.
Security sources said the village is dominated by Wazir tribes and
is near the border with South Waziristan, another hub of Taliban and
Al-Qaeda operatives.
“Between 11 to 14 alleged militants, mainly foreigners, were killed
in the strike,” claimed a senior military official while talking to
Pakistan Observer on condition of anonymity.
APA Razmak said two missiles were fired on a house suspected to be
occupied by the militants killing at least 11 people and wounding 7
others.
It was not immediately clear if there were any high-value targets
among those killed, sources added. An intelligence official, also
speaking on condition of anonymity, added “The strike successfully
destroyed the camp.”
The independent sources ,however, said it is yet to be confirmed if
the victims of the Friday missile attack were the militants or the
innocent people as has usually been the case.
Locals said a number of dead bodies have been recovered from the
debris which belong to local tribals as the tension was fast
mounting in the region following attack.
A Pakistani intelligence agency official said the strike was on a
house in North Waziristan but a military official said the attack
was in South Waziristan. “It happened close to the border. We have
reports of 15 dead but it will take time to get more information,”
said a military officer.
There have been nearly 20 attacks by suspected missile-firing
pilotless U.S. drones since the beginning of September, but Friday’s
is the first since Tuesday’s U.S. presidential election. More than
100 innocent tribals have been killed of the US missile attacks in
the short span of few months in North and South Waziristan agencies
alone.
It may be recalled that in earlier missile attacks by the US led
allied forces in Tanday Darba Khel area in North Waziristan Agency
at the residence of former Afghan Commander Jalaluddin Haqqani more
than twenty people were killed , and over twenty civilians succumbed
to their injuries when the US missiles landed at Angoor Adda in
South Waziristan Agency in two attacks alone.
According to rough estimates the US led allied forces drones
launched around 17 attacks in Pakistani Western borders amid claims
by the Pentagon that they have been hitting high value target. The
tribals and the independent sources on the other hand are fully
convinced that only civilians fell prey to the American adventurism
at Pakistani soil. A senior functionary of the government ridiculing
the Americans claim said the US was yet to provide any proof it had
hit the wanted people in the missile attacks which were only proving
counter productive.
APP adds from Islamabad: Federal Minister for Information and
Broadcasting Sherry Rehman has condemned the US missile attack in
North Waziristan that killed 10 people on Friday. “The series of
unilateral actions against targets on Pakistan’s soil is a
self-defeating strategy. The US Administration’s reluctance to
consider the repercussions of such operations is damaging the whole
purpose of global efforts to combat terrorism,” said the Federal
Information Minister commenting on the reports of the fresh US
attacks on the FATA region, according to a press release issued
here. Ms Sherry Rehman informed the media that the issue of the US
unilateral operations is being taken up at the highest level, with
both the President and the Prime Minister demanding the US
administration to halt its military actions on Pakistan’s soil. |
