Pakistani officials say alleged NATO attack kills at least 12

By Karin Brulliard and Haq Nawaz Khan, Saturday, November 26, 3:13 PM

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – The Pakistani army said Saturday ugg boots minnesota ugg boots in minnesota ugg boots in houston
that NATO helicopters fired on a Pakistani border checkpost overnight, and local officials said as many as 12 soldiers stationed there had been killed.

The alleged attack, said to have taken place early Saturday in the Mohmand region of Pakistan’s tribal belt along the Afghan border, could become a new flash point in the ever-rocky U.S.-Pakistan alliance. NATO troops battling militants in Afghanistan coordinate border operations with the Pakistani military, but Pakistan does not permit the international forces to enter or fire inside its territory.

4

Comments

Weigh In
Corrections?

inShare

Video
Following the mission to kill Osama bin Laden, tensions ugg boots houston ugg arizona uggs outlet los angeles
have increased between the United States and one of its top Middle Eastern allies, Pakistan. (Oct. 27)

Following the mission to kill Osama bin Laden, tensions have increased between the United States and one of its top Middle Eastern allies, Pakistan. (Oct. 27)

More on this Story

Pakistani ambassador offers resignation
Sources: Pakistan, Taliban discuss peace deal
In Pakistan, a deep civil-military divide
More headlines from around the world

View all Items in this Story

In a statement, the Pakistani military called the strike “unprovoked and indiscriminate.” Pakistani media, citing anonymous sources, reported that the firing appeared to be a result of miscommunication and that civilians might also have been killed. NATO officials in Kabul said they were aware of the incident and investigating, the Associated Press reported.

Casualty figures were unclear Saturday morning. Pakistani media reported that more than eight troops were killed. In interviews, a tribal administration official and one resident said at least 12 soldiers had died. The governor of Pakistan’s nearby Khyber-Pakhtunwha province, Masood Kausar, condemned the strike, saying it was a violation of Pakistani sovereignty.

“We will go to the highest level to investigate this incident,” Masood said.

Pakistan, which has a powerful army deployed to fight Islamist militants and deter next-door enemy India, is extremely sensitive about violations of its territory.

In May, the U.S. raid to kill Osama bin Laden in Pakistan roiled the nation and humiliated the army, which was not informed about the operation and did not stop it.uggs outlet in los angeles uggs outlet in illinois uggs outlet illinois
A NATO airstrike that killed three Pakistani soldiers in September 2010 strained bilateral relations and prompted Pakistan’s army chief to temporarily shut a key border crossing used by convoys carrying supplies to U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

The alleged strike on Saturday came one day after Gen. John Allen, the commander of the U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan, visited Pakistani army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. According to a Pakistani military statement, the two discussed border coordination and other measures “aimed at enhancing border control on both sides.”