TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Pakistan Condemns U.S. Raid On Its Village

ADVERTISEMENT

The Associated Press

Published: September 4, 2008

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Pakistan angrily condemned a raid on a village that killed at least 15 people Wednesday, claiming U.S.-led troops flew in from Afghanistan for the first known foreign ground assault against a suspected Taliban haven in this country's wild tribal belt.

The Foreign Ministry protested the attack, and an army spokesman warned that the apparent escalation from recent missile strikes on militant targets along the Afghan border would further anger Pakistanis and undercut cooperation in the war against terrorist groups.

The boldness of the thrust fed speculation about the intended target, but it was unclear whether any extremist leader was killed or captured in the operation, which occurred in one of the militant strongholds dotting a frontier region considered a likely hiding place for Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida's No. 2 leader, Ayman al-Zawahri.

U.S. military and civilian officials declined to respond to Pakistan's complaints or discuss the attack, but one official in Washington said any decision to launch a mission sure to anger Pakistan would require a very important target.

Suspected U.S. missile attacks killed at least two al-Qaida commanders this year in the same region, drawing protests from Pakistan's government that its sovereignty was under attack. U.S. officials did not acknowledge any involvement in those attacks.

U.S. commanders have been complaining publicly that Pakistan puts too little pressure on militant groups that are blamed for mounting violence in Afghanistan, stirring speculation that U.S. forces might lash out across the frontier.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT