Concerned over continued violation of its ‘territorial integrity’, Pakistan Thursday said the country will raise the issue of US drone strikes in Pakistan’s territory at United Nations.

Islamabad, Sept 12/Nationalturk  – Pakistan Thursday said the country will raise the issue of US drone strikes in Pakistan’s territory at United Nations.

“Pakistan government has prepared a case aimed at raising the issue of US drone strikes on Pakistani territory at United Nations,” Pakistan foreign office spokesman  Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry said in his weekly press briefing.

The US drones carried out strikes in Pakistan’s tribal areas on September 6, killing over half a dozen militants including a senior commander of Haqqani network fighting US forces in Afghanistan.

Pakistan has been condemning US drone strikes in its territory.  The country has been maintaining that these unilateral strikes are violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Denying that there was any secret pact with US over drone attacks, Aizaz in his weekly press briefing said, “There was no secret agreement between Pakistan and the United States on drone strikes. Pakistan government has no idea where the drones were flown in from”.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been pressing US to end drone strikes in the country.

He has said the drone attacks were not only a violation of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity but also an action that has been declared as a violation of international law and the UN Charter.

US drone strikes are counter-productive

“Pakistan has consistently maintained that drone strikes are counter-productive, entail loss of innocent civilian lives and have human rights and humanitarian implications. Such strikes also set dangerous precedents in the inter-state relations,” a senior Pakistan government official said.

He said these drone strikes have a negative impact on the mutual desire of Pakistan and US to forge a cordial and cooperative relationship and to ensure peace and stability in the region.

A research by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism has said, “Between 2004 and 2013, US drone attacks in Pakistan killed up to 3460 people. About 890 of them were civilians”.

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Faiz Ahmad / NationalTurk Pakistan News

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