US missile strike kills in North Waziristan

MIRANSHAH: A US unmanned plane on Monday fired missiles into a vehicle, killing four militants in Pakistan’s North Waziristan on the Afghan border, security officials said.
  
“A US surveillance plane fired two missiles into a vehicle and four militants were killed,” a senior Pakistani security official told AFP on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media. AGENCIES

Pakistan Senator says Obama pressure on militants hurts Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD: President Barack Obama’s warning to Islamabad over suspected ties to militants will only fuel anti-Americanism and make it harder for Pakistan to support U.S. efforts to stabilise Afghanistan, a senior senator said on Friday.

Pakistan is seen as critical to bringing peace to neighbouring Afghanistan, but the United States has failed to persuade it to go after militant groups it says cross the border to attack Western forces in Afghanistan.

“This is not helping either the United States, Afghanistan or Pakistan,” Salim Saifullah, chairman of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, told Reuters.

“There will be pressure on the (Pakistan) government to get out of this war,” he said, referring to the U.S. war on militancy.

Obama warned Pakistan on Thursday that its ties with “unsavory characters” had put relations with the United States at risk, as he ratcheted up pressure on Islamabad to cut links with militants mounting attacks in Afghanistan.

His comments are likely to deepen a crisis in the strategic alliance between the United States and Pakistan.

Obama accused Pakistan’s leaders of “hedging their bets” on Afghanistan’s future, but stopped short of threatening to cut off U.S. aid, despite calls from lawmakers for a tougher line over accusations that Pakistani intelligence supported strikes on U.S. targets in Afghanistan.

Pakistan says it has sacrificed more than any other nation that joined America’s global “war on terror” after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, losing 10,000 soldiers and security forces, and 30,000 civilians.

But its performance against militants operating from its unruly tribal northwest border region is a frequent source of tension between Washington and Islamabad.

Pakistan is often accused of playing a double game, vowing to help the United States fight some militant groups while using others as proxies in Afghanistan.

Ties were heavily damaged after U.S. special forces launched a secret raid that killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in May, which Islamabad saw as a violation of its sovereignty.

On Thursday, a Pakistani commission said a Pakistani doctor accused of running a vaccination programme that helped the CIA track down bin Laden should be tried for high treason, which is punishable by death.

Relations deteriorated further after the top U.S. military official accused Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) spy agency of supporting a Sept. 13 attack by the Taliban-allied Haqqani militant group on the U.S. embassy in Kabul.

Saifullah said Washington’s public criticism of Pakistan would only encourage militant groups.

“War in Afghanistan is passing through a critical phase, evolutionary phase,” he said. “At this stage, muddying water is not appropriate. This is exactly what the militants want. They are playing to their tune. This is adding strength to them.”

Some analysts agree with his assessment.

“This will create more tension and what the Americans want is not likely to happen in the near future,” said political analyst Hasan Askari Rizvi.

The United States has long called for a military offensive against the Haqqani network, which it says is based in North Waziristan, a global hub for militants on the Afghan border.

Pakistan sees the Haqqani network — perhaps the most feared insurgents in Afghanistan — as a counterweight to the growing influence of rival India there, analysts say.

Pakistan denies links to the group, which says it no longer operates from sanctuaries in North Waziristan.

Obama made clear that future U.S.-Pakistani relations would depend heavily on whether Islamabad complies with Washington’s demands to sever connections with insurgents.

Mahmud Ali Durrani, a former Pakistani ambassador to Washington, wondered if the two sides could ever repair ties.

“There are too many issues, and too much mistrust to call this a strategic relationship,” he said.

But public demands from Washington will make Islamabad more reluctant to take action because caving in after constant pressure could be political suicide in a country where anti-American sentiment runs high, and the government is unpopular.

Many Pakistanis believe they have been dragged into a war against militancy that only serves American interests.

That sentiment is growing because of an escalation of U.S. drone aircraft missile strikes against militants in Pakistan under the Obama administration.

“Are we owned by the United States? If so, please make our terms of servitude clear, Mr. Obama, so we can just get on with it,” said Mishayl Naek, a bank employee in the city of Karachi, in reaction to the U.S. president’s demands of Pakistan.

For Asad Ali Bangash, 45, Obama’s comments were proof of what he has feared all along.

“America wants an excuse to invade Pakistan. There are difficult times ahead for Pakistan, because America has decided that Pakistan has to be eliminated because it is a fort of Islam,” said Bangash, who runs a medical supply business.

Obama wants to stabilise Afghanistan as U.S. forces are drawn down with the goal of ending their combat mission by 2014.

Instead of public confrontation, Obama should work more closely with Pakistan to help Afghanistan, said Saifullah.

“This is no time for this kind of (allegation) when they are pulling out,” he said. “They should be seriously working on the endgame.”

Even if Pakistan wanted to eliminate the Haqqanis, an assault could be risky. The group, which says it has more than 10,000 fighters, spent years forming alliances with various militant groups seeking to topple the U.S.-backed government.

The Haqqanis’ ties with powerful tribes are another concern. Intelligence officials say Pakistan fears an assault would provoke a larger tribal uprising in North Waziristan. AGENCIES

Pak to compensate drone strike families

MIRANSHAH: Pakistan will pay compensation to the families of 39 people who died in a US drone strike in North Waziristan tribal area bordering Afghanistan, an official said Saturday.

Civilians and police were among those killed when missiles hit a compound in Datta Khel, 40 kilometres (25 miles) west of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan on March 17.

Tribal administration official Asghar Khan said a compensation package was ready for the victims” families. “Three hundred thousand rupees ($3,530) each will be paid to 39 families, while 100,000 rupees will be paid to six injured,” Khan said, adding that payments would commence from Monday.

Pakistan pays compensation to police and civilians who get killed in bomb blasts or terror attacks but this will be the first time that compensation has been paid to US drone attack victims.

Pakistan”s civilian and military leaders have condemned the strike, demanding an apology and an explanation from the United States.

Missile attacks doubled in the area last year to more than 100, killing over 670 people in 2010 compared with 45 strikes that killed 420 in 2009. Most have been concentrated in North Waziristan.

N.Waziristan: Troop killed in Afghan mortar shells attack

A security personnel got killed while three others injured when fired from Afghanistan hit a military checkpost in North Waziristan, trendpk.com reported on Wednesday.

Sources said that as many as ten mortar shells fired from the Afghan side hit Bange-i-Dar checkpost in Ghulam Khan town in North Waziristan tribal district.As a result, four security men got injured of whom one succumbed to his injuries later. The wounded have been shifted to CMH located at Bannu.

The attack was ensued by an exchange of fire between Pakistan and Afghan forces, which is still continued.

US Drones Overflying North Waziristan

MIRANSHAH, trendpk: US Predator unmanned drones flew over various parts of North Waziristan tribal region. The locals in the region bordering Afghanistan seen more than 10 flights of drone over the region.

Meanwhile, the local administration has declared indefinite curfew from Miranshah Stadium checkpost to Miranshah Bazaar, Bypass Road, Khar Kamar, tehsil Dattakhel and other areas. Dattakhel road has been closed for all traffic, reports said.

North Waziristan: First Drone Attacks of 2011, 11 killed

In the Span Wam Tehsil of North Waziristan, first drone attack of 2011 claimed lives of 8 miscreants.

According to official sources, in the area of Mandi Khel, North Waziristan, US drones fired 4 missiles targeting a car and a house due to which 8 miscreants got killed; although the death toll is expected to rise. In the year 2010, the count of drone attacks was 120. While on the other side, the second drone attack of this year was also took place in Mandi Khel. US drone fired 2 missiles targeting a car due to which 3 more miscreants were killed. The beginning of this new year was also done by three drone attacks.

US Drone Strikes kill 8 in North Waziristan

MIRAN SHAH, trendpk: At least eight persons were killed and several injured in strikes by pilotless US spyplanes in tehsil Mir Ali of North Waziristan tribal region on Tuesday.

The drones fired missiles at two houses in Ghulam Khan area of Mir Ali killing eight persons and injuring several others, sources said. The injured have been shifted to hospital.

The sources fear increase in death toll in drone strikes.

The region was also targeted yesterday in which 21 persons were killed.

Pak Army to decide timeline of North Waziristan operation: Munter

US ambassador in Pakistan Cameron Munter said that Pak Army will decide timeline of operation in North Waziristan but US wants early start of military operation in the area. He said that military leadership has assured army operation in North Waziristan according to its resources.

Talking to media in Islamabad, he said that it was vital to wipe out Al-Qaeda and terrorist groups from Pakistan and Afghanistan. He said that US had no reservations over Pak-China civil nuclear pact but China should follow international supplier laws.

He said that current Pak government has to do a lot of work for the stability of the region. He said that US will further promote its military and security ties with Pakistan.

North Waziristan: 4 Militants killed in Drone Strike

At least 4 militants have been killed in a US drone strike in North Waziristan, Trendpk.com reported on Tuesday.

The strike took place in Spalga village, 15 kms south of Miramshah, the main town of the North Waziristan tribal district, near the Afghan border.

Another security official confirmed the strike and said the drone fired two missiles.

However, more casualties are feared as some people might be trapped under rubble.

Missile attack kills 3 terrorists in N.Waziristan

Staff Report

MIRANSHAH: At least three terrorists have been killed in the spying missile attack in North Waziristan, Trend Pk learnt on Sunday.

Sources told two missiles were fired on a vehicle Spianwah area of tehsil Hasan Khel where three terrorists were killed while several others injured. Trend Pk

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