1st LD Writethru: U.S. drone strike kills 3 in NW Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- At least three people were killed when a U.S. drone fired missiles along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, local Urdu media reported on Thursday.

The attack happened in Pakistani territory of Kurram agency, one of the seven tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, Geo TV quoted the local tribal sources as saying.

The aircraft fired two missiles at the hideout of a Taliban commander named Rasheed, and killed him with two others. The strike happened at about 4:30 a.m local time (2330 GMT Wednesday), said the report.

The aircraft kept on hovering over the area before launching the strike, causing panic among the local people.

On Oct. 16, Pakistani media reported that three U.S. drone strikes had been conducted in the same area, killing nearly 31 suspected militants. However, the Pakistani army denied the reports on the next day and said no drone strike had taken place in Pakistan.

Drone strikes are highly unpopular among the Pakistani public. They say the drone kills militants and civilians indiscriminately.

Islamabad also condemns such attacks, calling them violations of their sovereignty. Enditem