Suspected US missiles hit a house, kill 10 in northwest Pakistan on Afghan border

Suspected US missiles kill 10 in NW Pakistan

MIR ALI, Pakistan — Suspected U.S. missiles hit a house in a Pakistani tribal area early Monday, killing 10 alleged militants in the 11th airstrike in the region this month, intelligence officials said.

The two officials said the missiles from an unmanned plane destroyed the home in the northern part of Shawal village, which is dominated by the Haqqani and Hafiz Gul Bahadur networks of militants fighting U.S. troops across the border in Afghanistan.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to talk to the press.

They say Taliban militants dug 10 bodies from the rubble of the house.

Bahadur struck a truce with the Pakistani military and agreed to stay on the sidelines last year as it waged an offensive in the South Waziristan tribal area against the Pakistani Taliban, a group dedicated to attacking the Pakistani state, among other targets.

Bahadur has focused instead on battling U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan.

An unrelenting series of U.S. missile attacks this month have pounded North Waziristan, a lawless region also home to al-Qaida leaders plotting attacks in the West and extremists responsible for bombings in Pakistan. At least 51 people have been killed.

Pakistan has condemned the American missile strikes as violations of its sovereignty, warning the civilian casualties they cause deepen anti-U.S. sentiment and complicate the fight against terrorism.

But many suspect the two countries have a deal allowing the drone-fired attacks.

Associated Press Writer Ishtiaq Mahsud in Dera Ismail Khan contributed to this report.