A US drone attacked two vehicles in South Waziristan today, killing eight alleged militants. At least four of them were reportedly foreigners, according to Pakistani officials. Three others were also injured in the attack.
It was the first such attack in a little over a week: a week ago Sunday a missile strike killed five in North Waziristan. Since taking office, President Obama has dramatically escalated the number of drone attacks along the Pakistani border, damaging the government’s credibility in the tribal areas.
And yet, this attack too was confined to Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas. Last week officials were reported to be pressuring the president to expand the attacks even further, targeting the major city of Quetta, capital of the Balochistan Province. So far, however, no attacks in Balochistan have been reported.