drone_670
US drone. - File Photo

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has strongly protested the US drone attacks in North Waziristan on Saturday morning which killed at least six people.

In a statement Foreign Office spokesman said Pakistan has consistently maintained that these attacks are a violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity and also in contravention of international law.

Six people were killed and two others injured in US drone attack on Shawwal area of North Waziristan. According to reports drone fired two missiles on a house and a vehicle.

The al Qaeda-linked Haqqani network in North Waziristan, blamed for some of the deadliest attacks in Afghanistan, is one of the thorniest issues between Islamabad and Washington.

Washington has long demanded that Pakistan take action against the Haqqanis, whom the United States accused of attacking the US embassy in Kabul last September and acting like the “veritable arm” of Pakistani intelligence.

Pakistan has in turn demanded that Afghan and US forces do more to stop Pakistani Taliban crossing the Afghan border to relaunch attacks on its forces.

There has been a dramatic increase in US drone strikes in Pakistan since May, when a Nato summit in Chicago could not strike a deal to end a six-month blockade on convoys transporting supplies to coalition forces in Afghanistan.

On July 3 however, Islamabad agreed to end the blockade after the United States apologised for the deaths of 24 Pakistani soldiers in botched air strikes last November.

The latest attack, which came after a lull of about three weeks, was in the same region where a drone strike on June 4 killed 15 militants, including senior al Qaeda figure Abu Yahya al-Libi.

ISI chief Zaheerul Islam's trip to Washington this month signalled a thaw in relations beset by crisis since US troops killed al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden near Islamabad in May 2011.

Opinion

Beefing up security

Beefing up security

The issue lies not in the sincerity and dedication of Pakistan’s law enforcement but in their capacity and access to effective surveillance equipment.

Editorial

Concerning measures
Updated 03 Nov, 2024

Concerning measures

The govt must seek political input and consensus on the changes it is seeking to make and be open about its intentions.
Short-lived relief?
03 Nov, 2024

Short-lived relief?

POLICYMAKERS must be jumping with joy. At the close of the first quarter of FY25, the budget posted a consolidated...
Brisk spread
03 Nov, 2024

Brisk spread

THE surge in polio cases has reached distressing levels with a tally of 45 last reported, after two cases emerged in...
Ultimate price
Updated 02 Nov, 2024

Ultimate price

To dismantle culture of impunity for crimes against journalists, state must ensure that perpetrators do not go unpunished.
Mastung bombing
02 Nov, 2024

Mastung bombing

INSTABILITY continues to haunt Balochistan, as Friday morning’s bombing in Mastung has shown. At least nine...
Plane speak
02 Nov, 2024

Plane speak

DESPITE all its efforts to facilitate PIA’s privatisation, it seems the government only ended up being taken for a...