This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/south_asia/8115814.stm
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 3 | Version 4 |
---|---|
'Dozens dead' in US drone strike | |
(about 2 hours later) | |
At least 45 people have died in a missile strike by a US drone aircraft in a Taliban stronghold area of Pakistan, officials there have said. | |
The people killed in South Waziristan had been attending a funeral for others killed in a US drone strike earlier. | |
Intelligence officials said at least 45 people had been killed and dozens more injured in the later strike, when two missiles were fired. | |
But a local official told BBC News the death toll was more than 50. | |
The region is a stronghold of Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud. | The region is a stronghold of Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud. |
Earlier on Tuesday, tribal leader Qari Zainuddin, who often criticised Mehsud, was shot dead by a gunman in north-western Pakistan. | Earlier on Tuesday, tribal leader Qari Zainuddin, who often criticised Mehsud, was shot dead by a gunman in north-western Pakistan. |
Earlier this month, Zainuddin criticised Mehsud after an attack on a mosque, which killed 33 people. | Earlier this month, Zainuddin criticised Mehsud after an attack on a mosque, which killed 33 people. |
The Pakistani army is preparing to launch an offensive against Taliban fighters under Mehsud's command, who are blamed for a number of deadly attacks. | The Pakistani army is preparing to launch an offensive against Taliban fighters under Mehsud's command, who are blamed for a number of deadly attacks. |
But Zainuddin's killing is being seen as a setback for the government in its efforts to isolate Mehsud ahead of the security forces' next phase of their anti-Taliban offensive in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, says the BBC's Mike Wooldridge in Islamabad. | But Zainuddin's killing is being seen as a setback for the government in its efforts to isolate Mehsud ahead of the security forces' next phase of their anti-Taliban offensive in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, says the BBC's Mike Wooldridge in Islamabad. |