SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
An MQ 9 Reaper drone. (Photo: US Air Force)
US Drone Kills 20 as Pakistan Military Offensive Continues
Pakistan military claims no connection between ongoing assault and US drone attacks in North Waziristan
Jul 16, 2014
Roughly 20 people were reportedly killed by a U.S. drone strike in a tribal region of Pakistan early Wednesday morning, the second such attack this week.
According to local sources as reported by Al Jazeera, four missiles fired by the drone targeted a vehicle in the Dattakhel area of North Waziristan resulting in the destruction of the vehicle and an adjacent compound.
One official told AFP that as many as 20 people were killed in the attack though other reports note that the death toll may rise as people were still trapped in the rubble of the destroyed building. Drones were reportedly still flying over the scene as people continued to dig through the rubble.
The attack comes less than a week after six others were reportedly killed when CIA-operated drones destroyed a house and vehicle near Datta Khel on July 10.
Hours after the Wednesday strike, the Pakistan military said they killed an additional 35 "fleeing terrorists" in an aerial bombardment of the Shawal Valley area of North Waziristan.
The Pakistan military claims there is no connection between the Shawal Valley airstrikes the the U.S. drone attack. Publicly, the country condemns the drone strikes saying they often result in civilian casualties and violate state sovereignty.
More than 900,000 people have fled North Waziristan since the Pakistan military launched an air and ground assault on the tribal region on June 15. According to the military's figures, more than 455 have been killed since the offensive began. The military claims all of those killed were "terrorists."
The drone strike on Wednesday was the fifth such attack since a six-month hiatus by U.S. forces ended in June.
_____________________
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Lauren McCauley
Lauren McCauley is a former senior editor for Common Dreams covering national and international politics and progressive news. She is now the Editor of Maine Morning Star. Lauren also helped produce a number of documentary films, including the award-winning Soundtrack for a Revolution and The Hollywood Complex, as well as one currently in production about civil rights icon James Meredith. Her writing has been featured on Newsweek, BillMoyers.com, TruthDig, Truthout, In These Times, and Extra! the newsletter of Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. She currently lives in Kennebunk, Maine with her husband, two children, a dog, and several chickens.
Roughly 20 people were reportedly killed by a U.S. drone strike in a tribal region of Pakistan early Wednesday morning, the second such attack this week.
According to local sources as reported by Al Jazeera, four missiles fired by the drone targeted a vehicle in the Dattakhel area of North Waziristan resulting in the destruction of the vehicle and an adjacent compound.
One official told AFP that as many as 20 people were killed in the attack though other reports note that the death toll may rise as people were still trapped in the rubble of the destroyed building. Drones were reportedly still flying over the scene as people continued to dig through the rubble.
The attack comes less than a week after six others were reportedly killed when CIA-operated drones destroyed a house and vehicle near Datta Khel on July 10.
Hours after the Wednesday strike, the Pakistan military said they killed an additional 35 "fleeing terrorists" in an aerial bombardment of the Shawal Valley area of North Waziristan.
The Pakistan military claims there is no connection between the Shawal Valley airstrikes the the U.S. drone attack. Publicly, the country condemns the drone strikes saying they often result in civilian casualties and violate state sovereignty.
More than 900,000 people have fled North Waziristan since the Pakistan military launched an air and ground assault on the tribal region on June 15. According to the military's figures, more than 455 have been killed since the offensive began. The military claims all of those killed were "terrorists."
The drone strike on Wednesday was the fifth such attack since a six-month hiatus by U.S. forces ended in June.
_____________________
Lauren McCauley
Lauren McCauley is a former senior editor for Common Dreams covering national and international politics and progressive news. She is now the Editor of Maine Morning Star. Lauren also helped produce a number of documentary films, including the award-winning Soundtrack for a Revolution and The Hollywood Complex, as well as one currently in production about civil rights icon James Meredith. Her writing has been featured on Newsweek, BillMoyers.com, TruthDig, Truthout, In These Times, and Extra! the newsletter of Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting. She currently lives in Kennebunk, Maine with her husband, two children, a dog, and several chickens.
Roughly 20 people were reportedly killed by a U.S. drone strike in a tribal region of Pakistan early Wednesday morning, the second such attack this week.
According to local sources as reported by Al Jazeera, four missiles fired by the drone targeted a vehicle in the Dattakhel area of North Waziristan resulting in the destruction of the vehicle and an adjacent compound.
One official told AFP that as many as 20 people were killed in the attack though other reports note that the death toll may rise as people were still trapped in the rubble of the destroyed building. Drones were reportedly still flying over the scene as people continued to dig through the rubble.
The attack comes less than a week after six others were reportedly killed when CIA-operated drones destroyed a house and vehicle near Datta Khel on July 10.
Hours after the Wednesday strike, the Pakistan military said they killed an additional 35 "fleeing terrorists" in an aerial bombardment of the Shawal Valley area of North Waziristan.
The Pakistan military claims there is no connection between the Shawal Valley airstrikes the the U.S. drone attack. Publicly, the country condemns the drone strikes saying they often result in civilian casualties and violate state sovereignty.
More than 900,000 people have fled North Waziristan since the Pakistan military launched an air and ground assault on the tribal region on June 15. According to the military's figures, more than 455 have been killed since the offensive began. The military claims all of those killed were "terrorists."
The drone strike on Wednesday was the fifth such attack since a six-month hiatus by U.S. forces ended in June.
_____________________
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.