Datta Khel airstrike
Encyclopedia
The Datta Khel airstrike was an American airstrike carried out on 17 March 2011 in Datta Khel, North Waziristan
that killed 44 people and led to widespread condemnation in Pakistan
. Sherabat Khan Wazir, a top commander of Hafiz Gul Bahadur
's Taliban faction, was killed in the strike, and in response Bahadur threatened to end the peace deal struck with the Pakistani government almost four years earlier. The airstrike was part of a long series of drone attacks in Pakistan
carried out by the CIA and United States
military. It occurred just two days after diyya
, a form of compensation paid to a victim's family under Islamic law
, was paid for the release of U.S. CIA operative Raymond Allen Davis
, signaling a resumption of U.S. activity after a several week hiatus while Davis' pardon on murder charges was being negotiated.
said that the building that was attacked was used as a training location and meeting place for militants. A car that was transporting additional suspected militants near the location of the primary target was also fired upon.
Of those killed, a Pakistani security official said that eleven Taliban personnel were killed in the attack, while the remainder were civilians. According to a local tribesman, however, the suspected militants were actually a group of tribal elders from a nearby village who were having a business meeting. The meeting was said to be regarding the disputed sale of a chromite
mine in the area. The tribesman said that a commander loyal to Bahadur, Sharabat Khan, was present, but only because he was also a tribal elder. Khan was reported to have been killed in the attack. After the attack the Taliban faction led by Hafiz Gul Bahadur threatened to cancel the peace deal with Pakistani government to protest the governments inability to halt drone attacks.
, the Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan Army
, issued a statement saying that the attack was "in complete violation of human rights" and that "such aggression against people of Pakistan is unjustified and intolerable under any circumstances." Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani
condemned the attack, saying that it would only strengthen the hands of militants. The governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Syed Masood Kausar
, also strongly condemned the attack, saying that civilians and policemen were killed.
Pakistan foreign secretary Salman Bashir
asked the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, Cameron Munter
, for an explanation and an apology. After the attack, Pakistan said it would not attend talks with the United States on 26 March 2011 in Brussels to discuss the future of Afghanistan. The foreign ministry of Pakistan stated that "[i]t is evident that the fundamentals of our relations need to be revisited… Pakistan should not be taken for granted nor treated as a client state
." The US embassy in Pakistan refused to comment, saying it was not aware that such talks had been proposed.
The attack came shortly after CIA contractor Raymond Allen Davis
, who had been arrested on charges of killing two people in January, was released, and protests against his release were expected to intensify after the drone strike.
, Lahore
and Peshawar
were closed due to security concerns. Thousands of protesters gathered in the capital Islamabad
, chanting "[f]riends of the US are traitors", "[d]own with America" and "[h]ang Zardari." In Miranshah
more than a thousand locals collected and demanded compensation for the dead and an immediate stop to the drone attacks.
North Waziristan
North Waziristan is the northern part of Waziristan, a mountainous region of northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan and covering . Waziristan comprises the area west and south-west of Peshawar between the Tochi river to the north and the Gomal river to the south, forming part of Pakistan's...
that killed 44 people and led to widespread condemnation in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. Sherabat Khan Wazir, a top commander of Hafiz Gul Bahadur
Hafiz Gul Bahadur
Hafiz Gul Bahadur is the leader of a Pakistani Taliban faction based in North Waziristan. Upon the formation of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan in December 2007, he was announced as the militant group's overall naib amir under Baitullah Mehsud, who was based in South Waziristan, but has largely...
's Taliban faction, was killed in the strike, and in response Bahadur threatened to end the peace deal struck with the Pakistani government almost four years earlier. The airstrike was part of a long series of drone attacks in Pakistan
Drone attacks in Pakistan
The United States government, led by the Central Intelligence Agency's Special Activities Division, has made a series of attacks on targets in northwest Pakistan since 2004 using drones . These attacks are part of the US' War on Terrorism campaign, seeking to defeat Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants...
carried out by the CIA and United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
military. It occurred just two days after diyya
Diyya
Diyya is compensation paid to the heirs of a victim. In Arabic, the word means both blood money and ransom.-Islamic and Arab tradition:The Qur'an specifies the principle of Qisas Diyya (plural: Diyyat; ) is compensation paid to the heirs of a victim. In Arabic, the word means both blood money and...
, a form of compensation paid to a victim's family under Islamic law
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
, was paid for the release of U.S. CIA operative Raymond Allen Davis
Raymond Allen Davis incident
Raymond Allen Davis is a former United States Army soldier, private security firm employee, and contractor with the Central Intelligence Agency . On January 27, 2011, Davis killed two reportedly armed men in Lahore, Pakistan. Although the U.S. government contended that he was protected by...
, signaling a resumption of U.S. activity after a several week hiatus while Davis' pardon on murder charges was being negotiated.
Attack
According to Pakistani intelligence officials, the attack targeted a compound where several dozen people believed to be Taliban militants linked to Hafiz Gul Bahadur were meeting. On 17 March 2011, two or three missiles were fired within three minutes, killing at least 44 people and injuring around fifteen others. A security official in PeshawarPeshawar
Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....
said that the building that was attacked was used as a training location and meeting place for militants. A car that was transporting additional suspected militants near the location of the primary target was also fired upon.
Of those killed, a Pakistani security official said that eleven Taliban personnel were killed in the attack, while the remainder were civilians. According to a local tribesman, however, the suspected militants were actually a group of tribal elders from a nearby village who were having a business meeting. The meeting was said to be regarding the disputed sale of a chromite
Chromite
Chromite is an iron chromium oxide: FeCr2O4. It is an oxide mineral belonging to the spinel group. Magnesium can substitute for iron in variable amounts as it forms a solid solution with magnesiochromite ; substitution of aluminium occurs leading to hercynite .-Occurrence:Chromite is found in...
mine in the area. The tribesman said that a commander loyal to Bahadur, Sharabat Khan, was present, but only because he was also a tribal elder. Khan was reported to have been killed in the attack. After the attack the Taliban faction led by Hafiz Gul Bahadur threatened to cancel the peace deal with Pakistani government to protest the governments inability to halt drone attacks.
Reaction
General Ashfaq Parvez KayaniAshfaq Parvez Kayani
General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, NI, HI is a four-star general in the Pakistan Army, and the current Chief of Army Staff of the Pakistan Army. He replaced General Pervez Musharraf as the Chief of Army Staff and the commandant of the army on November 29, 2007...
, the Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan Army
Pakistan Army
The Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
, issued a statement saying that the attack was "in complete violation of human rights" and that "such aggression against people of Pakistan is unjustified and intolerable under any circumstances." Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani
Yousaf Raza Gillani
Yousuf Raza Gilani is the current prime minister of Islamic Republic of Pakistan. He was nominated as Prime Minister by the PPP, with the support of its coalition partners, Pakistan Muslim League , Awami National Party, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam and Muttahida Qaumi Movement, on 22 March 2008...
condemned the attack, saying that it would only strengthen the hands of militants. The governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Syed Masood Kausar
Syed Masood Kausar
Syed Masood Kausar is a Pakistani politician and a senior member of Pakistan Peoples Party led by Former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto. Masood Kausar is brother of famous Urdu poet Ahmed Faraz...
, also strongly condemned the attack, saying that civilians and policemen were killed.
Pakistan foreign secretary Salman Bashir
Salman Bashir
Salman Bashir is a Pakistani diplomat and the current Foreign Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 26 April, 2008. Bashir did his masters in History and LLB before joining the Foreign Service of Pakistan in February 1976...
asked the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, Cameron Munter
Cameron Munter
Cameron Phelps Munter is a United States diplomat and career foreign service officer. He is the Ambassador to Pakistan. Earlier, he was an advisor for political and military issues to Christopher R...
, for an explanation and an apology. After the attack, Pakistan said it would not attend talks with the United States on 26 March 2011 in Brussels to discuss the future of Afghanistan. The foreign ministry of Pakistan stated that "[i]t is evident that the fundamentals of our relations need to be revisited… Pakistan should not be taken for granted nor treated as a client state
Client state
Client state is one of several terms used to describe the economic, political and/or military subordination of one state to a more powerful state in international affairs...
." The US embassy in Pakistan refused to comment, saying it was not aware that such talks had been proposed.
The attack came shortly after CIA contractor Raymond Allen Davis
Raymond Allen Davis incident
Raymond Allen Davis is a former United States Army soldier, private security firm employee, and contractor with the Central Intelligence Agency . On January 27, 2011, Davis killed two reportedly armed men in Lahore, Pakistan. Although the U.S. government contended that he was protected by...
, who had been arrested on charges of killing two people in January, was released, and protests against his release were expected to intensify after the drone strike.
Protests
Thousands of Pakistani protesters took to the street following the attack. The US Embassy in Islamabad and consulates in KarachiKarachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
, Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
and Peshawar
Peshawar
Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....
were closed due to security concerns. Thousands of protesters gathered in the capital Islamabad
Islamabad
Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan and the tenth largest city in the country. Located within the Islamabad Capital Territory , the population of the city has grown from 100,000 in 1951 to 1.7 million in 2011...
, chanting "[f]riends of the US are traitors", "[d]own with America" and "[h]ang Zardari." In Miranshah
Miranshah
Miranshah is the capital or headquarters of North Waziristan in Pakistan. It is the site of a town, which has s small airfield that was built by the British for World War II. The area in which Miranshah sits is extremely dangerous mainly due to Taliban activities and U.S. Drone...
more than a thousand locals collected and demanded compensation for the dead and an immediate stop to the drone attacks.
Military
After the attack, the Pakistani Air Force increased air patrols of the northwestern tribal areas in Pakistan. It also cancelled holidays and breaks for officials in the region.See also
- Gora Prai airstrikeGora Prai airstrikeThe Gora Prai airstrike was an airstrike by the United States that resulted in the deaths of 11 paramilitary troops of the Pakistan Army Frontier Corps and 8 Taliban fighters in Pakistan's tribal areas...
- 23 June 2009 Makeen airstrike23 June 2009 Makeen airstrike23 June 2009 Makeen airstrike was an attack launched by United States drones on a funeral procession in the city of Makeen in South Waziristan, Pakistan. The attack targeted a funeral procession of militants killed earlier in the day in a prior similar strike by drones...
- List of military strikes against presumed terrorist targets
- Waziristan WarWar in North-West PakistanThe War in North-West Pakistan is an armed conflict between the Pakistan Armed Forces and armed religious groups such as the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan , Lashkar-e-Islam, TSNM, Arab and Central Asian militants including Al-Qaeda, regional armed movements and elements of organized crime.The armed...
- Pakistan – United States relationsPakistan – United States relationsPakistan – United States relations refers to the bilateral relationship between the Pakistan and the United States. The United States first established diplomatic relations with Pakistan on 20 October 1947. The relationship since then was based primarily on U.S. economic and military assistance to...