The Pakistani army said yesterday it had found the wreckage of a suspected US spy plane near the Afghan border, but denied claims that it had been shot down.
The incident comes amid strained ties between Washington and Islamabad over a series of missile strikes from US drones at suspected militants targets on the Pakistan side of the border.
Three Pakistani intelligence officials earlier said troops and tribesmen had shot down the aircraft late on Tuesday near Jalal Khel, a village in Pakistan’s South Waziristan region.
However, a Pakistan army statement yesterday said security forces had recovered the crashed surveillance aircraft. It said a technical problem appeared to have brought it down and that it was investigating further.
US officials did not confirm the loss of any their drones, which can also be equipped with video surveillance equipment.
Confirmation of Pakistani forces firing on US troops or aircraft could trigger a crisis in relations between Islamabad and Washington, who are close but uncomfortable allies in the US-led war on terrorism.
Pakistani leaders are condemning stepped-up US operations across the border from Afghanistan — especially a highly unusual raid into South Waziristan by US commandos on Sept. 3.
The government says it is trying to resolve the dispute diplomatically.
However, the army has vowed to defend Pakistan’s territory “at all cost,” and Tuesday’s incident was at least the third this month in which Pakistani troops have reportedly opened fire to counter an incursion.
US President George W. Bush did not directly refer to the incursions after he met his Pakistani counterpart, Asif Ali Zardari, for the first time in New York on Tuesday.
“Your words have been very strong about Pakistan’s sovereign right and sovereign duty to protect your country, and the United States wants to help,” Bush said.
The three Pakistani intelligence officials said the drone was hit after circling the Angoor Ada area of South Waziristan for several hours. Wreckage was strewn on the ground, they said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.
A senior US official challenged the account.
“We’re not aware of any drones being down,” said the official, who also asked for anonymity because of the diplomatic sensitivity of the issue.
Meanwhile, a suicide car bomber rammed a military jeep in a Pakistani border city yesterday, killing an 11-year-old girl and injuring 11 troops, police said.
The attacker rammed the military vehicle on the road to the airport in Quetta, provincial police chief Asif Nawaz Warraich said.
Speaking to Dawn News television, Warraich said 13 people were injured, including 11 from the paramilitary Frontier Corps. Some of the troops were in serious condition, he said.
Raja Ishtiaq, another senior police official, said seven injured people were brought to Quetta’s main hospital and that an 11-year-old schoolgirl had died.
Quetta, the capital of the southwestern province of Baluchistan, is considered a hub for Taliban militants.
BACKLASH: The National Party quit its decades-long partnership with the Liberal Party after their election loss to center-left Labor, which won a historic third term Australia’s National Party has split from its conservative coalition partner of more than 60 years, the Liberal Party, citing policy differences over renewable energy and after a resounding loss at a national election this month. “Its time to have a break,” Nationals leader David Littleproud told reporters yesterday. The split shows the pressure on Australia’s conservative parties after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor party won a historic second term in the May 3 election, powered by a voter backlash against US President Donald Trump’s policies. Under the long-standing partnership in state and federal politics, the Liberal and National coalition had shared power
A Croatian town has come up with a novel solution to solve the issue of working parents when there are no public childcare spaces available: pay grandparents to do it. Samobor, near the capital, Zagreb, has become the first in the country to run a “Grandmother-Grandfather Service,” which pays 360 euros (US$400) a month per child. The scheme allows grandparents to top up their pension, but the authorities also hope it will boost family ties and tackle social isolation as the population ages. “The benefits are multiple,” Samobor Mayor Petra Skrobot told reporters. “Pensions are rather low and for parents it is sometimes
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
Two people died and 19 others were injured after a Mexican Navy training ship hit the Brooklyn Bridge, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said yesterday. The ship snapped all three of its masts as it collided with the New York City landmark late on Saturday, while onlookers enjoying the balmy spring evening watched in horror. “At this time, of the 277 on board, 19 sustained injuries, 2 of which remain in critical condition, and 2 more have sadly passed away from their injuries,” Adams posted on X. Footage shared online showed the Mexican Navy ship Cuauhtemoc, its sails furled
RSS