WAZIRISTAN – At least seven people were killed in a missile strike in northwest Pakistan, according to security officials.
Unconfirmed reports said a US drone fired four missiles at a compound in north Waziristan and two cars parked outside were destroyed.
The US military has increased attacks on militant targets in the tribal areas near the Afghan border.
Meanwhile, Pakistani authorities yesterday reopened a border crossing with Afghanistan, allowing Nato supplies to be trucked to coalition troops, a Pakistani government official said.
Pakistan announced the reopening of the Torkham crossing in the northwest on Saturday, 10 days after its closure, after Washington apologised to Islamabad for a Nato helicopter incursion on September 30th that killed two Pakistani soldiers.
Shahriyar Khan, a government official at the crossing, said more than 150 vehicles parked on the Pakistani side were allowed to cross into Afghanistan.
“Custom clearance has been done since morning and now vehicles have started going to Afghanistan,” he said.
Pakistan closed the Torkham route passing through the famous Khyber Pass soon after the Nato raid, citing security reasons.
The incursion sparked public anger and militants stepped up attacks on tankers transporting fuel supplies for Nato forces in Afghanistan.
On Saturday, militants torched 30 Nato tankers in the southwestern Baluchistan province from where the second supply route passes through.
The Chaman border crossing in the southwest has remained open.
The routes through Pakistan bring in 40 per cent of supplies for Nato forces in Afghanistan, according to the US military. Of the remainder, 40 per cent come through Afghanistan’s neighbours in the north and 20 per cent by air.
Nine Afghan civilians, including women and children, were killed when their vehicle hit a homemade bomb in Zurmat district of southeastern Paktia province, the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force said. – (Reuters)