At least eight persons, including three Haqqani network commanders, were killed today in a rare US drone strike outside Pakistan's tribal belt, just a day after a top official said the US had agreed to halt such attacks during negotiations with militants.
The CIA-operated spy plane fired three missiles at Islami Madrassa Muktaba Darul Uloom at Thall in Hangu district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. Thall is located within the settled areas and just outside North Waziristan Agency.
According to Afghan Taliban sources, those killed included Ahmad Jan, a close aide of Haqqani network chief Sirajuddin Haqqani, and commanders Gul Marjan and Hamidullah. Five others were injured.
The attack came a day after Sartaj Aziz, the Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs and National Security, told a parliamentary panel that the US has assured Pakistan it will not conduct drone strikes during the government's talks with the militants.
Today's strike was also the first since the one that killed Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan chief Hakimullah Mehsud on November 1. Senior leaders, including Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, had accused the US of attempting to "sabotage" talks with the Taliban by targeting Mehsud.
Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf, an opposition party led by former cricketer Imran Khan, described the drone attack as a "declaration of war" by the US.
The party, which will hold a sit-in on Saturday to block NATO supply trucks going though Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province which it rules, said the time had come for Pakistan to take tough action.
