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ISLAMABAD – Pakistan announced on Thursday that it was finalizing preparations to raise the contentious issue of US drone strikes on the country’s restive northwestern tribal belt – which it sees as a violation of its national sovereignty – with the UN
Pakistan announced on Thursday that it was finalizing preparations to raise the contentious issue of US drone strikes on the country’s restive northwestern tribal belt – which it sees as a violation of its national sovereignty – with the UN.
“Preparations [to raise the issue at the UN] are in the final stage,” Foreign Office spokesman Aizaz Chaudry told Anadolu Agency.
“All concerned Pakistani foreign missions have been alerted.”
The decision was taken at an all-party conference held in Islamabad on Monday under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
Participants at the conference, which was attended by all of Pakistan’s major political parties and its top military leadership, unanimously decided to take the controversial issue to the UN Security Council, if needed.
“Pakistan has always considered drone attacks as not only a violation of its sovereignty, but also as counter-productive vis-à-vis the war on terror,” said Chaudry, citing the frequent killings of civilians in such strikes.
According to international peace organizations and think tanks – including the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, Amnesty International and the New America Foundation – over 3,000 Pakistanis have been killed in more than 360 drone strikes since 2004.
More than 70 percent of the casualties were civilians, according to estimates, including women and children.
The US claims that drone attacks are being carried out “carefully,” specifically targeting Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants hiding out in South and North Waziristan.
The first US drone strike occurred in 2004, targeting then Taliban commander Maulvi Naik Mohammad near Wana, the capital of South Waziristan, which borders northeastern Afghanistan.
Although Pakistan officially denounces the attacks, there is a general perception in the country that the two partners in the so-called “war on terror” have a tacit agreement regarding the use of unmanned aerial drones.
However, the government and military leadership vehemently denied the allegation at last week’s all-party conference.
During a recent visit to Islamabad, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon described the drone strikes as violations of both human rights and the UN charter.
“International laws about drone attacks should be complied with,” he had said at the time.
