Thousands rally against US drone strikes Saturday, 29 October 2011 02:15

ISLAMABAD: Around 2,000 Pakistanis demonstrated outside the country’s parliament yesterday to demand an end to US drone strikes, claiming they kill more innocent civilians than Taliban and Al-Qaeda leaders.

Cricket hero turned politician Imran Khan led the Islamabad rally, attended mostly by members of his Tehreek-e-Insaf (Movement for Justice) party, which is gearing up to contest its first general election.

A few dozen tribesmen from Waziristan, where most of the drone strikes are concentrated, also attended the peaceful demonstration.

Some young people in the crowd set fire to a wooden model of a drone, dancing around and shouting “No more drone attacks”, “No to drones, no to USA”, carrying big signs saying “Stop drone attacks in Pakistan”.

On Thursday, Pakistani officials said two US drone strikes killed at least 10 militants in Waziristan, including the brother of a local Taliban commander who sends fighters across the border to fight Americans in Afghanistan.

Security sources said there was strong evidence that Taj Gul Mehsud, a senior Taliban commander and close aide to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) leader Hakimullah Mehsud, was among the victims in the attack on Wednesday.    

Six others were injured, security forces said.    

Security officials and Taliban sources said the remote location of the suspected strike prevented it from being reported earlier, and reports of the strike only surfaced when the injured arrived at a hospital in Mir Ali.

Under President Barack Obama, the United States has drastically stepped up drone strikes, which it refuses to discuss publicly, killing foot soldiers as well as Taliban and Al-Qaeda commanders active in Afghanistan.

“The USA says Pakistan is a terrorist country, but they come and kill in Pakistan: who is the true terrorist then?” said 28-year old Nawad Kayani, a Khan activist and businessmen in the capital’s twin city of Rawalpindi.

“We came here to support the Waziri people: 90 or 95pc of the drone victims are innocent civilians. Our government is just a puppet directed by America, they just polish American shoes,” he added.

There is widespread anti-Americanism in Pakistan despite the government’s alliance with the US-led war on terror, and opposition to the drone strikes, although the attacks have never mobilised a widespread public movement.                

Agencies

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