Pakistan's protested US bombing raids before. No wonder they're pissed.

[bigtree]

from a Pakistan-American source:

Attack in Bajaur Agency kills 18: Raid believed to be made by US aircraft

By Anwarullah Khan
http://www.dawn.com/2006/01/14/top3.htm

KHAR (Bajaur Agency), Jan 13: Eighteen people, including 14 members of a family, were killed and six others injured early on Friday when US aircraft fired missiles at residential compounds in Damadola village in Bajaur Agency, officials and local people said.

Government officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that four aircraft violated the country’s airspace and entered the tribal area from Afghanistan’s troubled Kunar province at about 3am.

The intruding aircraft fired at least nine missiles at houses in Damadola, about 10 kilometres northeast of Khar, the agency’s headquarters, an official said.

Eyewitnesses said that a majority of the slain victims were women and children. Up to 14 of these victims belonged to one family, they said.

Some of the victims were identified as Hussain Nawaz, a five-year-old child, 9-year-old Mehda Bibi, 10-year-old Sadiqa Bibi, 9-year-old Taib, seven-year-old Zahidullah, Amir Mohammad, Bibi Noor Pari, Shah Baden Bibi, Zahira Bibi, Qari Seedullah and Bekhtpur Khan.

full account: http://www.dawn.com/2006/01/14/top3.htm


official Pakistan news agency release:

Sheikh Rashid regrets loss of civilian lives in Bajur Agency incident

ISLAMABAD, Jan 13 (APP): Minister for Information and Broadcasting Sheikh Rashid Ahmed on Saturday expressed regrets over the loss of civilian lives in Bajur Agency incident.

"We deeply regret that civilian lives have been lost in an incident in Bajur Agency," he said while addressing a press conference on the incident that took place in Bajur on Friday.

"While this act is highly condemnable we have been for a long time striving to rid all tribal areas of foreign intruders who have been responsible for all the misery and violence in the region," he said.

That situation has to be brought to an end, the Minister said and stressed that people should fully cooperate with the Government in riding the areas of foreign militants.

"It is also the responsibility of the people of the areas to fully cooperate with the Government in flushing out the foreign militants so that complete peace prevails in the areas, ensuring speedy development for which the Government has allocated vast resources," he said.

"We want to assure the people that we will not allow such incident to recur," Sheikh Rashid said.

Answering a question about reports that Al-Qaeda deputy leader Aymen al Zawahiri may have been killed in the incident, he said, "We have no information about it."

http://www.app.com.pk/n28.htm


from MOHMAND AGENCY (Online):

US air strike kills 18 tribesmen
As many as eighteen persons have been killed and six fatally injured due to bombardment by the allied aircraft from Afghanistan on Friday
):
http://frontierpost.com.pk/

The fourteen fatalities have been confirmed by ISPR, as briefed by Maj Gen. Shaukat Sultan.
The bombardment by the Allied forces, fell on Damadola Burkanday area of tehsil Mamoon in Bajaur agency at 3:00 am PST, completely flattening the homes of BakhtPur, Muhammad Rahim and Bacha Khan.
According to local eyewitnesses, fourteen members of BakhtPur family along with four others died, due to indiscriminate bombing. The dead included eight children, and four females. The dead included, 9-year old Nadia Bibi, 10-year old Sadiqa, 9-year old Tayyeb, 7 year old Zahid ullah, 5-year old Hussain Nawaz. Others included 20-year-old Ameer Muhammad, 25-year-old Nazir Muhammad, 50-year Noor Pari, 40-year old Shahi Badan, 30-year-old Qari Saeed, 30-year-old Tahira Bibi, and others. Some of the dead were unidentified.

The locals reported that the allied warplanes violated the Pakistani airspace from Afghanistan territory by 19 kilometers and targeted the said homes. The resultant explosions rocked the area far and wide, shattering windows.

The sources also reported reconnaissance flights spying on the area for the past few days.
The assistant Political Agent of the Nawagai region, Abdul Qayum acknowledged blasts heard at 0300 hrs, but said that since the reported area is located far away, no immediate details were available.
A team has been dispatched by the officials for further investigations. Bajaur Agency is located parallel to the Kunar Province of Afghanistan.

It is feared that the dead could well exceed 18. In the past about eight persons had died due to such bombings and the government had lodged strong protests to the American Administration.

The Bajur attack happened few days after Pakistan lodged protest with U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan about firing in the North Waziristan tribal area on Saturday night that had killed eight people.
Bajur border Afghanistan’s eastern Kunar province, where Taliban and Hekmatyar-led Hizbe-e-Islami are active.

full account: http://frontierpost.com.pk/


Thousands protest the airstrikes:

Thousands of tribesmen protested Saturday against an alleged US air strike targeting Al-Qaeda's second in command that killed 18 people near the Afghan border, witnesses said.

An estimated 5,000 people gathered at a stadium near Khar, the main town in the Bajur tribal zone, close to the village of Damadola where Friday's attack happened, hardline Pakistani legislator Haroon Rasheed told AFP.

Rasheed, from Pakistan's fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami party, condemned the attack as a "slap on the face of the country's sovereignty" as the crowd chanted anti-US slogans, witnesses said.

"It is shameful that innocent people of Pakistan are being killed by a foreign country with total impunity towards the state of Pakistan," he told the protesters.
The crowd chanted slogans including "A friend of the Americans is a traitor" and "We will launch jihad against the aggressor".

http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/jan-2006/14/latest.php



interesting poll at http://www.millat.com/

US bombs Pakistan
What should be Pakistan's response?

* Keep mum?

* Intercept the intruders next time?

* cant say anything

http://www.millat.com/

[TheCowsCameHome]

1. What do you suppose the chimp will say about this?

Nothing intelligent, I'll bet.

[bigtree]

4. He'll go with the officials who are claiming foreigners were among dead

even though the bodies were reportedly already buried, and in some accounts burned beyond recognition, and despite the eyewitness accounts of the residents who give names, genders, and ages of the victims. That's the benefit of the Pakistan dailys, at least initially. They have a much more detailed account of the bombings and the events on the ground, before and after the airstrikes.

[zanne]

2. Since when do we bomb Pakistan?

And how long has this been going on? The only reason this raid has been in the news at all is because they thought they "might" have killed Zarqawi. Doesn't this bombing bother anyone else?

[bigtree]

6. they've been protesting incursions for years after 9-11

you'd think they would be willing to let us go over there and kill whoever we want, but noooo, they have this aversion to our indiscriminate bombings and slaughter of innocents. Go figure.

[bullimiami]

3. their dictator is in bed with w.

they get the death benefit.

[bigtree]

5. Protesters tear-gassed after airstrike deaths in Pakistan

14 January 2006


KHAR, Pakistan - Pakistani police tear-gassed tribesmen who burned down a US-funded aid agency office Saturday after the deaths of 18 villagers in an airstrike targeting Al Qaeda’s number two, witnesses said.

An estimated 5,000 people had gathered at a stadium near Khar, the main town in the Bajur tribal zone, close to the village of Damadola where Friday’s attack happened, an AFP reporter said.

Hundreds of tribal policemen had been deployed in Khar and other nearby towns to keep order, witnesses said.

Police later fired tear gas shells to disperse the mob after the crowd headed towards a music and video cassette market, while security forces fired two shots in the air, the AFP reporter said.

Security men were also seen arresting young tribesmen and bundling them into the backs of vans.

Earlier Haroon Rasheed, a legislator from Pakistan’s fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami party, condemned the airstrike as a ”slap on the face of the country’s sovereignty” as the crowd chanted anti-US slogans, witnesses said.

“It is shameful that innocent people of Pakistan are being killed by a foreign country with total impunity towards the state of Pakistan,” he told the protesters.

“Those killed were all innocent tribesmen, there were women and children among the dead,” Rasheed said. “There was no Arab and no foreigners.”

full article:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/subcontinent/2006/January/subcontinent_January512.xml§ion=subcontinent&col=

[bigtree]

7. Pentagon denies knowledge of airstrikes

Washington/Islamabad - The U.S. Defence Ministry said Saturday it had no reports of an air raid on the Pakistani-Afghan border.

'We have no report of coalition military aircraft involvement in the area near the reported explosions,' a spokeswoman said.

http://news.monstersandcritics.com/southasia/article_1076102.php/Pentagon_has_no_reports_of_attack_in_Pakistan