Pakistan in Media

WASHINGTON: The White House has authorised the CIA to expand the use of unmanned aerial drones in Pakistan to track down and strike the suspected Taliban and al-Qaeda members, the New York Times reported on Friday.

The Times, citing unnamed sources, said that authorisation to expand the CIA drone usage in Pakistan’s tribal areas came this week, coinciding with President Barack Obama’s announcement on Tuesday of sending 30,000 more US troops to Afghanistan.

Washington is also talking with Pakistani officials about using the drones to strike in Balochistan, the Times reported. Analysts, intelligence agents and foreign officials have widely reported that the Taliban fighters use Balochistan as a base.

Islamabad publicly opposes their use as a violation of its sovereignty, but analysts say that Pakistani officials give their use tacit support.

Criticism of the strikes in Pakistan has lessened in public since a US drone attack killed Pakistan’s much-feared Taliban warlord Baitullah Mehsud on August 5.

The News International, Pakistan, Friday, June 19, 2009
WANA: Twelve persons were killed and 10 others sustained injuries when the US spy planes attacked two suspected training centres of a Taliban commander in Sholam and Raghzai areas, eight kilometres west of Rustam Adda in South Waziristan Agency (SWA) on Thursday.

Elders and officials of the political administration told The News the drones fired five missiles at the two compounds of a local Taliban commander Malang Wazir and his men in Sholam and Raghzai areas, killing 12 people and injuring 10 others. The attacks, carried out at about 12 noon, also reduced to ashes the suspected militant training centres.
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