Suspected US missiles kill 16 militants in Pakistan’s troubled South Waziristan tribal region

US missiles kill 16 militants in NW Pakistan

ISLAMABAD — U.S. missiles hit a suspected militant hide-out, killing 16 insurgents in a troubled Pakistani tribal region along the Afghan border before dawn Saturday, intelligence officials said.

The strike came as the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, Adm. Mike Mullen, met with top military officials in Pakistan, a key U.S. ally in the battle against Islamist extremists.

The six missiles struck a compound in the Nazai Narai area of South Waziristan. The hide-out was known to be frequented by foreign fighters who were among the dead, two intelligence officials said.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to go on the record, said agents were trying to get more details about the identities and nationalities of the dead.

Army spokesmen were not immediately available for comment.

U.S. missile strikes regularly pound extremist targets in the northwest. South Waziristan has witnessed several major Pakistani military operations since the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.

Washington has relied heavily on its covert missile campaign to take out al-Qaida, Afghan Taliban and their local supporters in North and South Waziristan tribal regions, which are hiding places for insurgents.

Most of the strikes have hit targets in North Waziristan — home to several militant networks that attack U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Although Pakistan publicly condemns the missile strikes, it has secretly helped Washington in previous attacks.

In retaliation, militants have been attacking Pakistani security forces and government officials besides carrying out suicide bombings across the country.

On Saturday, gunmen killed the son of northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province’s information minister, Mian Iftikhar Hussain, who comes from a secular party and is highly critical of the Taliban.

Hussain’s son, a government servant, was killed by two gunmen in his native Naushehra district while out for a stroll, said police official Nisar Khan. Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik blamed the killing on Taliban militants. “This is the price we are paying,” he said.

Pakistan’s importance to the American war effort in Afghanistan has been underscored by how frequently top U.S. political and military leaders pass through Islamabad and nearby Rawalpindi, where the Pakistani army has its headquarters.

Mullen was expected to meet Saturday with Pakistan’s army chief, Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, who was recently granted a three-year term extension, a sign of the desire for continuity in Pakistan’s battle against Islamist extremists.

In a press release, the U.S. embassy described Mullen’s visit as being part of “the regular bilateral consultations between the U.S. and Pakistan.”

Associated Press writers Ishtiaq Mahsud in Dera Ismail Khan, Hussain Afzal in Parachinar and Riaz Khan in Peshawar contributed to this report.