KHAR, Jan 18: Elders of Uthmankhel and Tarkani tribes of the Bajaur Agency have criticized Political Agent Fahim Wazir for saying that the US missile attack in the tribal area targeted foreigners.

They refuted the claim of the political administrator and said that no foreign militant was present in the agency.

At a jirga attended by more than 20 elders from the two tribes here on Wednesday, the participants demanded an independent inquiry into the incident. They said that by intruding into Pakistan’s territory US forces had not only violated the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR), they had also defied tribal customs and traditions.

They said that innocent children and women had been killed in the air strike carried. “We have assured the government time and again that no foreigner is hiding in the agency,” the tribal elders said. They demanded that the government should pay compensation to the relatives of the missile attack victims and take the tribal people into confidence before carrying out any such action in the agency.