US drones rain upon Pakistan

Call it the deadliest weekend of the deadliest month. The period spanning Friday to Sunday marked a sustained assault by US forces against terrorists in Pakistan, with over 30 dead in an attack by aircraft and choppers of the coalition forces, coupled with drone strikes.

Updated on: Sep 28, 2010, 24:03:15 IST

Hindustan Times | By Anirudh Bhattacharyya, New York

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Call it the deadliest weekend of the deadliest month. The period spanning Friday to Sunday marked a sustained assault by US forces against terrorists in Pakistan, with over 30 dead in an attack by aircraft and choppers of the coalition forces, coupled with drone strikes.

The attacks highlight the deadliest month of strikes within Pakistan by Predator drones, setting a new monthly record.

The latest helicopter attack and resultant ‘hot pursuit’ from Afghanistan into Pakistan came about as terrorists belonging to the Haqqani Network attempted an attack on Combat Outpost Narizah, and then fled across the border into Pakistan.

This is one of the few instances of such high-profile hot pursuit strikes within Pakistan. Two similar strikes had been reported in June and November 2008.

The total for drone strikes in September has touched a record of 19, far exceeding the previous high of 11 in January this year. The 73 drone strikes so far in 2010 is already more than double the number for 2008, and far more than the previous yearly high of 53 in 2009.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Anirudh Bhattacharyya
Anirudh Bhattacharya is a Toronto-based commentator on North American issues, and an author. He has also worked as a journalist in New Delhi and New York spanning print, television and digital media. He tweets as @anirudhb.Read More

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