Officials: US missiles kill 5 in NW Pakistan

A

AALARD

Guest
Officials: US missiles kill 5 in NW Pakistan

Associated Press
PESHAWAR, Pakistan – Officials say a suspected U.S. missile strike has killed at least five people in northwest Pakistan near the Afghan border.

Two intelligence officers and government official say two missiles struck Saturday in the Khyber tribal region.

The apparent strike is one of the first to hit that part of the lawless border region.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information to the media.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

PARACHINAR, Pakistan (AP) — Militants armed with assault rifles kidnapped about 60 people in a troubled tribal region in northwest Pakistan on Saturday after ambushing their vehicles, police said.

The hostages in the Kurram region included women and children, though it was not clear how many, area police chief Chaman Mir said. The group was headed to the northwestern city of Peshawar in 10 vehicles when they were ambushed.

Details of the kidnapping were sketchy and Mir said police were trying to trace and recover the hostages, who were all believed to be Pakistanis.

Robberies and kidnapping for ransom are common in the militant stronghold of Kurram, which borders Afghanistan and is next to Pakistan's Orakzai tribal region, where army troops have launched offensives to root out local Taliban. So far, troops have killed hundreds of insurgents in Orakzai, where insurgents are on the run.

Kurram has also witnessed clashes between the majority Sunni Muslims and the minority Shiite
 
Top