MIRAMSHAH: US drone attacks in tribal areas, which resumed on Wednesday after a gap of more than five months, continued on Thursday, leaving another 10 suspected militants dead in two pre-dawn strikes and taking the death toll since Wednesday evening to 16.

According to sources, foreign militants and Punjabi Taliban were among the dead. The sources said the drones targeted two militant hideouts, in Tabbi Toolkhel and Darga Mandi areas of North Waziristan.

In the Tabbi Toolkhel att­ack, drones fired four missil­es at a house and a vehicle, killing six people. In Darga Man­di, two missiles hit a comp­o­und, leaving four people dead.

Drones continued to hover over the region throughout the day, the sources added.

Reuters news agency quoted two government officials as saying that Pakistan had given the Americans “express approval” for the latest strikes.

But in Islamabad, says our staff reporter, the Foreign Office condemned the attacks and in a brief statement reiterated the official stance that the strikes were “a violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2014