Suspected US drone strike kills 15 in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - At least 15 people were killed and seven injured Tuesday in a suspected US drone attack in Pakistan’s troubled tribal region along the Afghan border, a security official said.

The airstrike occurred in Banga-e-Dar village of the Ghulam Khan area of North Waziristan, one of Pakistan’s seven tribal districts and a known sanctuary of Al Qaeda-linked Islamic militants.

A senior security official said four missiles were fired at a compound and a vehicle.

“We have been informed by our intelligence that 15 people have been killed and seven injured,” the official said on the condition of anonymity. “Foreigners are said to have been the target of the attack.”

The term foreigner is used for Central Asian and Arab fighters associated with Al Qaeda.

The official said the area targeted by the suspected pilotless aircraft is populated by the Mundeekhel subtribe.

North Waziristan is a stronghold of the Haqqani militant group, which has been involved in crossborder attacks in Afghanistan on NATO-led foreign troops. The US has been putting pressure on Pakistan to take action against the group, which is allied with the Taliban.

Pakistan publicly criticises the drone attacks, saying they cause resentment and increase support for militants, but its intelligence agencies are believed to cooperate in identifying the targets.