Feel good story of the day…
(LWJ)– The US carried out its first three Predator strikes of 2011, again targeting Taliban, al Qaeda, and Haqqani Network fighters based in Pakistan’s enemy-controlled tribal agency of North Waziristan.
The first strike took place in the village of Mandi Khel, an area under the influence of the Haqqani Network. The unmanned Predators or the more deadly Reapers fired four missiles at a compound and a house in the village, killing seven “militants.” The Predators circled back and fired two more missiles as Taliban fighters attempted to pull people from the rubble.
Four “foreigners,” a term used to describe Arab al Qaeda or Central Asian terrorists, are thought to be among those killed, Pakistani officials said, according to Dawn. The Taliban fighters are thought to have been under the command of Hafiz Gul Bahadar, the senior Taliban leader in North Waziristan. Bahadar provides shelter to top al Qaeda leaders as well as terrorists from numerous Pakistani and Central Asian terror groups.
The second strike targeted a compound in the village of Ghoresti, according to Geo News. Four Taliban fighters were killed in the strike.