2nd US drone strike kills 18 in Pakistan
At least 18 people have been killed in a second US drone attack on Tuesday in Pakistan’s northwest tribal region of North Waziristan, bringing to 25 the number of fatalities in the two unauthorized strikes in a single day.
The non-UN-sanctioned attack targeted a house and a vehicle in the Dari Nashtar area of North Waziristan, a Press TV correspondent reported. The number of missiles fired during the US attack is not yet clear.
Hours earlier, a US drone fired four missiles at Barmal area of tribal South Waziristan in northwestern Pakistan, killing seven people and injuring four others, according to a Press TV report.
The non-UN-sanctioned attacks comes a day after another deadly US drone strike in the same region that killed at least 25 people. Initial reports had put the number of fatalities in the Monday attack at 10, but local officials later said the number of those killed had reached 25.
There has been a significant rise in the frequency of the US drone attacks on Pakistan’s tribal areas, which has sparked criticism among Pakistani officials and nation.
Despite Islamabad’s calls on US to halt its unauthorized strikes, the newly appointed US Secretary of State, Leon Panetta threatened on Saturday to continue and intensify unauthorized American drone strikes in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia, in what he claimed as efforts to hunt down al-Qaeda leaders.
US military officials persistently claim that the airstrikes target militants, but most of the attacks have, in fact, resulted in civilian casualties.
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