Pakistani forces fire at US choppers
Tuesday, 23 September 2008
MIRANSHAH, (Pakistan), Sept 22 (AFP): Pakistani security forces opened fire at two US helicopter gunships which violated Pakistani airspace in a rugged tribal region bordering Afghanistan, local officials said Monday.
The incident happened late on Sunday near Lwara Mundi village in the North Waziristan district, where Pakistani forces have been battling Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants, they said.
"Pakistani forces fired at two US gunships which violated Pakistan's airspace and forced them to return to Afghanistan," a local security official told AFP on condition of anonymity. "The helicopters flew back after our troops fired shots at them," the official said.
There was no immediate comment from the Pakistani military or the US-led coalition in Kabul. Regular Pakistani army troops and paramilitary forces under the command of the interior ministry both operate in the region.
The incident comes amid growing anger in Pakistan at cross-border raids by US-led coalition troops based in Afghanistan targeting Islamic extremist hideouts.
A September 3 ground attack by US commandos in the neighbouring tribal district of South Waziristan left 15 people dead, sparking a furious response by Pakistani army chief General Ashfaq Kayani.
Meanwhile: Unidentified gunmen kidnapped an Afghan diplomat after shooting dead his driver in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar on Monday, police said.
"The consul-general was going home from his office when his car was fired upon. His driver has been killed and unidentified men have kidnapped the consul-general," said an Afghan consulate official in Peshawar, who requested anonymity.
Abdul Khaliq Farahi has been Afghanistan's consul-general in Peshawar since the fall of the Taliban in 2001.
An eyewitness told a Reuters journalist on the scene that two people were abducted.
"A gunman came in a car and intercepted this consulate car and shot dead the driver and took away two people," the man said.
The witness was led away by police for questioning before he could finish his account or give his name.
Another report adds: A top Pakistani official says the country's leadership was due to dine at the luxury hotel devastated in a weekend bombing, but changed venue at the last minute.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for Pakistan's top Taliban commander said the militant leader played no role in the attack, which killed 53 people at the favorite expatriate gathering spot.
Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik did not specify why the prime minister and president decided to move the Saturday event to the premier's house but said the decision was kept secret.
Suspicion has fallen on al-Qaida or the Pakistani Taliban in the blast.
But Amir Mohammad, an aide to militant leader Baitullah Mehsud, said he was not involved and shared the nation's grief.
The incident happened late on Sunday near Lwara Mundi village in the North Waziristan district, where Pakistani forces have been battling Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants, they said.
"Pakistani forces fired at two US gunships which violated Pakistan's airspace and forced them to return to Afghanistan," a local security official told AFP on condition of anonymity. "The helicopters flew back after our troops fired shots at them," the official said.
There was no immediate comment from the Pakistani military or the US-led coalition in Kabul. Regular Pakistani army troops and paramilitary forces under the command of the interior ministry both operate in the region.
The incident comes amid growing anger in Pakistan at cross-border raids by US-led coalition troops based in Afghanistan targeting Islamic extremist hideouts.
A September 3 ground attack by US commandos in the neighbouring tribal district of South Waziristan left 15 people dead, sparking a furious response by Pakistani army chief General Ashfaq Kayani.
Meanwhile: Unidentified gunmen kidnapped an Afghan diplomat after shooting dead his driver in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar on Monday, police said.
"The consul-general was going home from his office when his car was fired upon. His driver has been killed and unidentified men have kidnapped the consul-general," said an Afghan consulate official in Peshawar, who requested anonymity.
Abdul Khaliq Farahi has been Afghanistan's consul-general in Peshawar since the fall of the Taliban in 2001.
An eyewitness told a Reuters journalist on the scene that two people were abducted.
"A gunman came in a car and intercepted this consulate car and shot dead the driver and took away two people," the man said.
The witness was led away by police for questioning before he could finish his account or give his name.
Another report adds: A top Pakistani official says the country's leadership was due to dine at the luxury hotel devastated in a weekend bombing, but changed venue at the last minute.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for Pakistan's top Taliban commander said the militant leader played no role in the attack, which killed 53 people at the favorite expatriate gathering spot.
Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik did not specify why the prime minister and president decided to move the Saturday event to the premier's house but said the decision was kept secret.
Suspicion has fallen on al-Qaida or the Pakistani Taliban in the blast.
But Amir Mohammad, an aide to militant leader Baitullah Mehsud, said he was not involved and shared the nation's grief.