US drone strike kills 21 in North Waziristan

PESHAWAR: A US drone strike killed at least 21 suspected militants in North Waziristan region on Wednesday, officials said, just days after Pakistan called for "clear terms of engagement" in the US-Pakistan relationship.

Among those targeted in the attack on a house 3 km (2 miles) east of the main town of Miranshah were members of the Haqqani network responsible for the worsening insurgency in eastern Afghanistan, and foreign militants.

"The dead included local Taliban as well as some Arabs and Uzbek nationals," an intelligence official in North Waziristan said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

It was the largest strike since July 12, when US drones killed 48 suspected militants in North Waziristan.

Some Afghan insurgents belonging to the Haqqani network, a major militant fighting US-led foreign forces in Afghanistan, were among the dead in Wednesday's strike, a Pakistani intelligence official said.

It was not immediately known if any high-profile militants were among the dead. Militants often dispute official account of such strikes.

Initial reports said five militants were killed in the attack but officials said the toll had gone up to 21 after more bodies were found from the rubble of the house.

The latest strike took the death toll of suspected militants in such attacks since the beginning of June to more than 160, according to Reuters figures based on statements from local intelligence officials.

Copyright Reuters, 2011