Officials say suspected US missiles kill 3 in northwest Pakistan

Officials: US missiles kill 3 in NW Pakistan

MIR ALI, Pakistan — A suspected U.S. missile struck a house in northwest Pakistan close to the Afghan border Tuesday, killing three people, Pakistani intelligence officials said.

The identities of the victims in Miran Shah in North Waziristan were not known, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to media.

North Waziristan is dominated by militants from the Haqqani network, which is blamed for attacks against U.S. and NATO forces across the border in Afghanistan.

The United States routinely fires missiles against al-Qaida and Taliban targets in northwest Pakistan, striking at an area that up until 18 months ago was largely a militant safe haven. The attacks, fired mostly from unmanned drones, have killed many low- and mid-ranking insurgents.

They have attracted protest from the Pakistani public and politicians complaining about violations of sovereignty, but these days attract little comment. The country’s leaders are widely believed to cooperate with the strikes, but do not admit this in public for fear of a backlash.