Key terror target in Pak along Afghan border may have been hit in NATO forces air attack

An important terrorist target in a remote part of Pakistan situated along the Afghanistan border may have been hit in the early morning attack today by the US-led NATO forces, believe top Pakistan security officials. They are searching for clues to confirm whether the terror target was hit in the attack, in which at least 15 people were reportedly killed.

Islamabad, Sept 3 : An important terrorist target in a remote part of Pakistan situated along the Afghanistan border may have been hit in the early morning attack today by the US-led NATO forces, believe top Pakistan security officials. They are searching for clues to confirm whether the "terror target" was hit in the attack, in which at least 15 people were reportedly killed.

The operation took place near the village of Angor Adda in Pakistan's South Waziristan region, considered a notorious sanctuary for al Qaeda and Taliban militants. Eyewitnesses said the strike involved helicopter gunships, reported cbsnews.com.

Wednesday's attack was unusual in that it involved Western ground forces, the report quoted a Pakistani security official as saying on condition of anonymity.

Previous attacks on the Pakistani side of the border were believed to have been carried out primarily by CIA pilotless drones armed with hellfire missiles.

South Waziristan and the adjoining North Waziristan regions are known to be a home for fighters who routinely cross the border into Afghanistan to attack US and other Western troops, and then return to the relative security of Pakistani soil.

The reported use of ground troops prompted speculation that the attack was aimed at an important terrorist target, but also enraged local residents and authorities, who have long insisted that Western forces must not enter Pakistani territory, added the report.

"I don't know if there were any top targets. But there could well be moderately important terrorist targets. If there was deployment of grounds troops, which involved a greater risk than sending in a pilotless drone, that suggests the attackers were probably looking for a specific terrorist target," said the security official.

The CIA and other Western intelligence agencies are known to have scrutinized intelligence coming from North and South Waziristan in the past in their searched for some of al Qaeda's top leaders; most notably Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahri.

ANI