Feel good story of the day.
(LWJ)– Today, US Predators launched the first strike in Pakistan’s Taliban-controlled tribal agency of North Waziristan in six days, killing five “militants” in an area known to shelter al Qaeda’s top leaders.
The strike took place in the Datta Khel area, a command and control center for al Qaeda and allied terror groups. The unmanned Predators or the more deadly Reapers fired two or three missiles at a compound in Datta Khel, according to reports from the region.
A Pakistani intelligence official said all five people killed in the strike were “militants,” but did not identify which group they belonged to. No senior al Qaeda, Taliban, or other terrorist leaders have been reported killed in today’s strike.
The target of today’s attack is not clear. The US targets senior al Qaeda leaders, al Qaeda’s external operations networks, and the mishmash of terrorist groups, including the Taliban and the Haqqani Network, that carry out attacks in Afghanistan.
The Datta Khel area is administered by Hafiz Gul Bahadar, the Taliban commander for North Waziristan. Bahadar provides shelter to top al Qaeda leaders as well as terrorists from numerous Pakistani and Central Asian terror groups.
Datta Khel is a known hub of Taliban, Haqqani Network, and al Qaeda activity. While Bahadar administers the region, the Haqqani Network, al Qaeda, and allied Central Asian jihadi groups are also based in the area. The Lashkar al Zil, or al Qaeda’s Shadow Army, is known to have a command center in Datta Khel.