Intelligence officials: Suspected US drone strike kills 3 militants in NW Pakistan

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Suspected US drone strike kills 3 in Pakistan

MIR ALI, Pakistan — Intelligence officials say a suspected U.S. drone missile strike has killed three militants in Pakistan’s lawless tribal area near the Afghan border.

It was the third such attack in the past 24 hours in an area of North Waziristan controlled by a militant commander who has targeted coalition troops in Afghanistan.

The officials say the suspected U.S. drone fired three missiles at a house in the Pai Khel area of North Waziristan on Friday, killing the three militants and wounding two others.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A suicide car bomber detonated his explosives near a mosque inside a police compound in northwestern Pakistan on Friday, killing 10 people in the latest attack by suspected Taliban militants waging war against the government.

The bombing came as pressure increased on senior Pakistani officials facing corruption charges following the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down an amnesty issued by former President Pervez Musharraf. The ensuing political turmoil threatens to distract the government from its fight against the militants.

The Taliban have stepped up their campaign of violence since the military launched a major offensive in mid-October in the militant stronghold of South Waziristan in Pakistan’s lawless tribal area near the Afghan border. Friday’s attack was the second in two weeks against a mosque used by Pakistan’s security forces.

Most of the 10 people killed in the attack in the Lower Dir region were police leaving the mosque after Friday prayers, said the area’s police chief, Feroze Khan.

The blast wounded another 28 people, also mostly police, said a local hospital official, Ghulam Mohammed.

No group has taken responsibility for the bombing, but the Taliban has carried out similar attacks throughout the country.

Lower Dir is next to the Swat Valley, which Pakistani soldiers wrested from the Taliban earlier this year. But periodic attacks have continued in the area.

Militants have also staged attacks in Pakistan’s heartland, many of them against the country’s security forces.

A team of militants armed with guns, grenades and bombs raided a mosque near army headquarters outside of Islamabad on Dec. 4, killing 36 people.

Despite the recent wave of violence, which has killed more than 500 people in the past two months, the Pakistani military has vowed to continue its offensive in South Waziristan and crack down on other militants who threaten the state.

But recent political turmoil surrounding the Supreme Court ruling on the graft amnesty threatens to distract the government from the fight.

Pakistan’s defense minister was blocked from leaving the country Thursday along with nearly 250 other top officials following the court’s decision.

The country’s anti-corruption agency said the officials were now under investigation following this week’s court verdict, which meant that up to 8,000 graft and other cases dating back to the 1990s have been, or will soon be, reopened. Some of those who benefited from the amnesty are reported to have had convictions quashed.

U.S.-allied President Asif Ali Zardari and several of his key aides are among those who benefited from the amnesty deal. Zardari is protected by constitutional immunity from any criminal prosecution, but opponents say they plan to challenge his eligibility for office.

Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling has been welcomed by many Pakistanis, who viewed the graft amnesty as an immoral piece of legislation that whitewashed the crimes of the elite.

It was introduced as part of a U.S.-backed deal to allow Zardari’s wife, the late Benazir Bhutto, to return from self-imposed exile in 2007 and contest elections safe in the knowledge she would be immune to old graft accusations she insisted were politically motivated.

The 54-year-old, who heads the country’s largest party, is already unpopular, in large part because of his close ties with Washington. He now faces the prospect of bruising court battles that will likely mean old corruption charges come under fresh scrutiny.

Critics say he is morally obligated to resign, at least while the court hears any challenges to his rule.

The Obama administration needs political stability in Pakistan to succeed in neighboring Afghanistan, where violence against U.S. and NATO troops is running at all time highs. Washington is trying to get Islamabad to crack down on insurgents close to the northwestern border who it says are behind much of the violence in Afghanistan.