Pakistani officials: Suspected US missile kills 9
This Associated Press story written by Rasool Dawar clearly outlines the problem with this CIA drone program ...
"Pakistan publicly criticizes the U.S. missile attacks, saying they violate its sovereignty and fuel more anti-Americanism among the population, but Islamabad is widely believed to be sharing intelligence with the Americans on at least some of the strikes.
Washington refuses to publicly discuss the program, which uses unmanned drones, but Pakistani intelligence and government officials say privately the attacks have killed several senior al-Qaida and Taliban commanders in recent years."
By RASOOL DAWAR (AP) – 5 days ago
MIR ALI, Pakistan — An apparent U.S. missile attack destroyed a suspected militant compound in a tribal region of northwestern Pakistan on Tuesday, killing at least nine people, intelligence officials said.
It was not immediately clear who was targeted in the strike, in the Datta Khel region of North Waziristan, the two officials said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. An unknown number of people were injured.
The area is the home of Hafiz Gul Bahadur, a powerful warlord whose fighters are battling U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
The CIA has stepped up missile strikes on militant positions in Pakistan's tribal regions since December, when a suicide bomber killed seven CIA employees in neighboring Afghanistan.
Pakistan publicly criticizes the U.S. missile attacks, saying they violate its sovereignty and fuel more anti-Americanism among the population, but Islamabad is widely believed to be sharing intelligence with the Americans on at least some of the strikes.
Washington refuses to publicly discuss the program, which uses unmanned drones, but Pakistani intelligence and government officials say privately the attacks have killed several senior al-Qaida and Taliban commanders in recent years.
The complete article appears at the following link ...
The Associated Press
A similar story dated March 16 from India claims the count at 11 instead of 9.
http://sify.com/news/
US drone attack kills 11 in Pakistan
2010-03-16 17:40:00
A suspected US drone strike killed at least 11 militants Tuesday in Pakistan's tribal region near the Afghan border, an intelligence official said.
Several more people were injured in the aerial strike in the Datta Khel area of the North Waziristan tribal district, a known hub of Islamic militancy.
An intelligence official who spoke on condition of anonymity said four missiles were fired from a drone at two insurgent camps in the mountains.
According to the official, some of those killed were 'foreigners', a term that generally refers to Al-Qaeda-linked militants of Arab or Central Asian origin.
The toll and identities of the victims could not be independently verified as the area is out of reach of the media.
US authorities have intensified drone strikes in the North Waziristan district, which is used by insurgents to launch attacks across the border on NATO forces in Afghanistan.
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