US drone strike kills at least four militants near Afghan border
A United States drone strike targeting a militant compound yesterday killed at least four rebels in Pakistan's restive tribal region near the Afghan border, security officials said.
The strike took place in the Degan area of North Waziristan, known as a bastion of the Taliban and al-Qaeda.
"US drones fired four missiles on a compound, killing four militants," said a senior security official, adding that several drones were flying in the area at the time of the attack.
Another security official confirmed the strike and casualties.
He said the area had been the target of US drone strikes in the past, which killed several foreign militants.
The district was a stronghold of the Hafiz Gul Bahadur militant group, he said, adding that militants from the Afghan Taliban-allied Haqqani network also operated in Degan.
The al-Qaeda-linked Haqqani network in North Waziristan is blamed for some of the deadliest attacks in Afghanistan.
Unmanned US aircraft are deeply unpopular in Pakistan, which says they violate its sovereignty. But US officials are said to believe that they are too important to give up.
