A US missile strike killed at least six suspected militants near the Afghan border on Saturday, two intelligence officials said, in the third such missile attack in as many days. The officials said four missiles slammed into a compound near the border town of Angoor Adda in South Waziristan. The strike was targeting fighters of Maulvi Nazir, a militant commander who is accused of working with the Taliban and al Qaeda, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Nazir is believed to have an agreement with Pakistani authorities that they will leave him alone as long as his men refrain from carrying out attacks on Pakistani soil. Saturday’s strike was the latest in a string of missile attacks targeting the militant-infested border region. On Friday, US missiles killed four unidentified people in the North Waziristan. A day earlier, a missile attack in North Waziristan killed Janbaz Zadran. US officials say Zadran was a top commander in the Haqqani network and had helped orchestrate attacks in Kabul and southeastern Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, police on Saturday said they had arrested a Russian and two Azerbaijanis in Lakki Marwat, near North Waziristan. It was not clear how the men reached the region, which is off limits to foreigners, and authorities said they were still investigating to determine whether the men had any links to militant groups. Separately, eight militants were killed in fighter jets attacks on their hideouts in Orakzai Agency.
