revenge for failed NYC attack? 900 Islamists killed by drones since august 2008.


Miranshah, PAKISTAN (Agencies)

U.S. drone aircraft fired two missiles into a Taliban compound in Pakistan's North Waziristan region on the Afghan border on Sunday, killing at least 10 militants, Pakistani security officials said.

The strike took place in Inzarkas village, 50 kilometers (31 miles) west of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan tribal district, known as a hub for Taliban and al-Qaeda linked militants.

"The missiles struck a militant compound in the village, killing at least 10 rebels," a senior Pakistani security official in the area told AFP on condition of anonymity.


" The missiles struck a militant compound in the village, killing at least 10 rebels "
Pakistani security officialIt was the second drone missile strike on militants in northwest Pakistan since a failed bid to set off a car bomb in New York's Time Square last weekend.

Pakistan publicly objects to attacks by CIA pilotless aircraft, saying they are a violation of its sovereignty and fuel anti-U.S. feelings, which complicate Pakistan's efforts against militancy.

Unofficially, however, analysts say Pakistan is cooperating with the United States in identifying at least some of the militant targets attacked by the drones.

Last Monday, three militants were killed in a similar strike in North Waziristan.

The previous day, Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud, who was reported to have been killed in a drone strike in January, appeared in Internet videos threatening suicide strikes in the United States.

Last year, a drone killed Pakistani Taliban chief Baituallah Mehsud, who was accused of assassinating former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, in South Waziristan near the Afghan border.

The United States, struggling to stabilize Afghanistan, stepped up its missile strikes in Pakistan's northwest after a Jordanian suicide bomber killed seven CIA employees at a U.S. base across the border in the eastern Afghan province of Khost in December.

More than 900 people have been killed in over 100 drone strikes in Pakistan since August 2008.

http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2010/05/09/108088.html