Pakistan's government summoned the US ambassador yesterday to urge an immediate halt to missile strikes on suspected militant hide-outs near the Afghan border.| Missile strikes have killed at least two senior al-Qaida commanders in Pakistan. |
However, a marked uptick in frequency of the missile attacks has badly strained America's seven-year alliance with Pakistan, where rising violence is exacerbating economic problems gnawing at the nuclear-armed Islamic republic's stability.
Having called in U.S. Ambassador Anne Patterson on Wednesday, "a strong protest was lodged on the continued missile attacks by US drones inside Pakistani territory," a Foreign Ministry statement said.
| "It was emphasized that such attacks were a violation of Pakistan's sovereignty and should be stopped immediately." |
American commanders complain that Pakistani forces have not put enough pressure on militants in its remote and impoverished border regions, an area considered a possible hiding place for Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida No. 2 Ayman al-Zawahri. Reflecting that frustration,
| US military and CIA drones that patrol the frontier region are believed to have carried out at least 15 strikes since mid-August. |
Lawmakers on Monday pass a resolution condemning the attacks and calling on the government to take "more effective measures" to stop them. The Foreign Ministry said it gave a copy of the resolution to Patterson yesterday.