'US missiles' kill 20 militants

It may be mentioned here that the US-led troops have been targeting the hideouts of Al-Qaeda fugitives and their like-minded colleagues throughout Waziristan since last January.

Agencies add: Four missiles, believed to be fired by US-led forces in Afghanistan, hit the camp, security officials said, adding “There were reports about the presence of Arab, Turkmen and local militants.”

“This is their work,” he added, referring to US-led coalition forces deployed across the border in Afghanistan.

In Kabul, the US military said the missiles were not fired by either NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) or the US-led coalition.

“This is not true. We have no reports of missiles being fired into Pakistan,” US-led coalition spokesman Lieutenant Nathan Perry told AFP.

The US Central Intelligence Agency is also known to operate pilotless drone aircraft armed with missiles, but it was not available for comment.

Another security official said the camp was run by a local militant, Zanjir Wazir, who he described as the 'local commander of Hezb-i-Islami, Afghanistan'.

“It is not clear whether Wazir survived the attack or not, but his brother Abdur Rehman and one of their close relatives, Abdul Salam, were killed in the strike,” he added.