MIRANSHAH: Seven militants were killed and four others injured in a US drone attack in the mountainous Shawal Valley of the troubled North Waziristan tribal region on Monday. “The drone fired four missiles at a militants’ compound in Shawal Valley. According to initial information, seven militants were killed and four injured,” a senior government official said.Pleading anonymity, he said those killed in the drone strike included foreign militants.“All the militant groups, including members of al-Qaeda, had shifted to the mountainous Shawal Valley after the government launched a military operation against them in the plains of North Waziristan,” he said. Taliban sources said that members of the local tribal militants affiliated with Hafiz Gul Bahadur and Urdu-speaking Punjabi Taliban were killed in the drone strike.Journalists have no access to North Waziristan and, therefore, it is always difficult to independently verify these reports. There was no way to collect information about the identity of the slain militants. The US drones usually target militants who cross the border and attack foreign forces and their installations in Afghanistan and then return to their safe havens in the lawless tribal areas along the Afghan border.INP adds from Islamabad: Pakistan has condemned the US drone strike that took place in Pungai, Shawal area of North Waziristan Agency on Monday morning. In a statement, foreign office spokesperson said the Government of Pakistan reiterates its well known position that such strikes constitute a violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity and demands their immediate cessation.
