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18 die as US jets target Al-Qaida leader in Pak

Shah Zaman, who lost his three children, walks on the rubble of his house, destroyed in an apparent pre-dawn air strike in Damadola, about 200 km northwest of Islamabad, on Friday. The air strike in a remote Pakistani tribal area killed at least 17 persons. — AP/PTI photo

Islamabad/Washington, January 14
A US airstrike in Pakistan targeted Al-Qaida’s second-in-command, Ayman Al Zawahri, but it was unclear if he had been killed, US sources knowledgeable about the strike said in Washington.

CNN quoted sources as saying the CIA had ordered the airstrike on buildings after receiving intelligence that Zawahri was in a village near the border with Afghanistan.

“At this time, there is nothing in the operational reporting to suggest that this attack or incident occurred from a US Central Command perspective,” said Major Chris Karns.

Al-Qaida’s second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahri, was not in a village near the Afghan border that was hit by a US airstrike, a senior Pakistani Government official said today.

A Pakistani security official and residents of the region said earlier that U.S. aircraft from Afghanistan had killed 18 people, including women and children, when they fired missiles at pro-Taliban Islamists in the Bajaur tribal region.

Residents of Bajaur, opposite Afghanistan’s insurgent-troubled Kunar province, said aircraft had fired on the village of Damadola at about 3.30 am IST yesterday.

The missiles destroyed three houses. Five women and five children were among 18 dead, while five people were hurt, journalist Anwar Ullah said after visiting the scene. — Reuters