After new strategy: Trump resurrects drone campaign

Three suspected militants killed as pilotless aircraft targets compound in Kurram

PARACHINAR: Three suspected militants were killed in a US drone attack in Kurram Agency on Friday in the first strike since President Donald Trump outlined a new strategy for Afghanistan and beyond.

Maulana Muhibullah was among the fatalities in the strike in the Charmanak area of Kurram, which borders the Afghan province of Paktika, according to officials.

“A remotely-piloted US aircraft fired two missiles at the home of Maulana Muhibullah,” senior government officer Baseer Khan Wazir said. “The Maulana, along with two others, was killed in the attack.

Residents confirmed the death of Muhibullah and his bodyguard, though the bodies were charred beyond recognition.



Another official told AFP the strike took place in the remote Ghuz Ghari village, where at least five fighters from the Afghan Taliban had gathered. "At least three fighters have been killed and two wounded," the official added.

Political administration officials told The Express Tribune that the drone had been flying over the agency since Friday morning.

A spokesperson for the US-led international force in Kabul had no immediate information on the report but said he would look into it.

Two Afghan Taliban sources told Reuters Muhibullah was affiliated with the Haqqani Network “but wasn’t a prominent figure”.

Just hours after the drone strike, a twin hand-grenade attack at the main entrance to the Pak-Afghan border in Torkham injured at least six paramilitary soldiers from the Tochi Scout, security officials said.

After the incident, the Torkham gate was closed while the security forces launched a search operation to apprehend the culprits. The injured were shifted to the Combined Military Hospital in Landikotal.

With additional input from Reuters