Suspected US drone crashes in Pakistan
Tuesday, 26 January 2010
PESHAWAR, (AP): A suspected US drone crashed in Pakistan's lawless tribal area near the Afghan border Sunday, a rare mishap for a program Washington has increasingly relied on to kill Taliban and al-Qaida militants, said intelligence officials and a local resident.
Local tribesman in North Waziristan were congratulating each other for shooting down the drone, said resident Saudur Rehman. But the Pakistani army rejected similar claims after a drone crashed in neighboring South Waziristan in 2008, saying it was a technical problem.
"I saw that the aircraft was coming down and finally crashed in an open area a distance from me," said Rehman, who indicated he heard gunfire just before the crash. "Tribesmen are celebrating and congratulating each other for shooting it down."
North Waziristan is dominated by militant groups that stage cross-border attacks against US and NATO troops in Afghanistan. One of those groups, the Haqqani network, an al-Qaida-linked Afghan Taliban faction, is believed to have helped orchestrate the Dec. 30 suicide bombing at a remote base in Afghanistan that killed seven CIA employees.
Local tribesman in North Waziristan were congratulating each other for shooting down the drone, said resident Saudur Rehman. But the Pakistani army rejected similar claims after a drone crashed in neighboring South Waziristan in 2008, saying it was a technical problem.
"I saw that the aircraft was coming down and finally crashed in an open area a distance from me," said Rehman, who indicated he heard gunfire just before the crash. "Tribesmen are celebrating and congratulating each other for shooting it down."
North Waziristan is dominated by militant groups that stage cross-border attacks against US and NATO troops in Afghanistan. One of those groups, the Haqqani network, an al-Qaida-linked Afghan Taliban faction, is believed to have helped orchestrate the Dec. 30 suicide bombing at a remote base in Afghanistan that killed seven CIA employees.