Drones strike locations in Pakistan including Quetta, wounding civilians; Taliban claims military targets
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Drones struck three locations in Pakistan on March 13, wounding two children in Quetta and civilians in Kohat and Rawalpindi, the garrison city near the capital Islamabad.
Pakistan's military stated the drones were intercepted before reaching their targets and dismissed Taliban claims of striking military sites in Rawalpindi and Islamabad as propaganda, describing the devices as "rudimentary" and "locally produced." The Taliban group in Afghanistan claimed responsibility for the attacks on military targets.
President Asif Ali Zardari said Kabul had "crossed a red line by attempting to target our civilians."
Similar incidents occurred in late February, when Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said anti-drone systems downed small drones over Abbottabad, Swabi and Nowshera in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. In Bannu, also in the province, a quadcopter struck a mosque, injuring five men.
Pakistan responded to the drone incursions by imposing a nationwide ban on drone flights and briefly restricting airspace over the capital.
"As much as Pakistan is downplaying these drones, the point is not what level of drone they are; the point is that drones are coming, and they are coming to the capital. That is the central danger," said Abdul Basit, a senior associate fellow at the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in Singapore.
The incidents come amid an escalating conflict described as an "open war" between Pakistan and Afghanistan that has lasted three weeks.
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Where reports agree
- Drone incursions reported in multiple locations including Quetta, Kohat, Rawalpindi (March 13), Abbottabad, Swabi, Nowshera (late Feb), and Bannu
- Pakistani officials confirmed intercepting or downing drones
- Civilian injuries reported in several incidents
Where reports differ
- Taliban claims successful strikes on military targets in Rawalpindi/Islamabad; Pakistan military says drones intercepted before targets and were rudimentary/locally produced
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