Monday, October 6, 2014

Pakistan: Drone strike kills four, wounds eight in South Waziristan

An unmanned drone killed four persons and wounded eight others in Shawal, South Waziristan tribal region on Monday.
Intelligence sources say the drone targeted the residence of a Taliban commander, Habib, and left at least four suspected militants dead and about 8 others injured.
The strike destroyed the compound which is situated in Mangroti area near the Pak-Afghan border region and appeared to be a transit point for militants across the border.
The details and confirmation of Habib's death could not be independently verified since the media's access is severely restricted in the troubled region.
This is the second drone strike during the past 24 hours and the 9th attack this year.
Earlier on Sunday, a drone strike had killed five people in the Kand Ghar area of South Waziristan's Shawal district.
South Waziristan is among Pakistan’s seven tribal districts near the Afghan border which are rife with homegrown insurgents and are alleged to be strongholds of Taliban and Al Qaeda operatives, among others.
The tribal region was once the main stronghold for the Pakistani Taliban. The military launched a large offensive against militants there in 2009 and an operation launched this year is currently underway, but insurgents still operate in the area and periodically stage attacks.
Drone attacks are widely unpopular across Pakistan and according to survey conducted in June this year, 66 per cent of the country's citizens oppose these strikes.

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