US Drone Kills 10 Taliban Suspects In Pakistan

A U.S. drone killed 10 suspected Taliban militants in Pakistan on Saturday morning, according to Pakistani officials.

The drone fired missiles at a compound in the Shawal mountain area of North Waziristan on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, CNN quoted the Pakistani official as saying.

"The death toll in the U.S. drone strike has risen to 10. The drone fired two missiles at the compound," AFP quoted another security official as saying. Earlier, the death toll was put at six.

Close to eight missiles were fired at the house, according to an Associated Press report.

The identity of those killed has not been revealed yet. The insurgents have been using the house as a training center, according to the report.

The region has been a regular target for drone attacks since it is believed to be a safe haven for militants across the world. It is also suspected to be the key center for staging attacks against U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

This is reportedly the second such drone strike by the U.S. on Pakistan's soil this week.

The drone program remains controversial; the Pakistani government want the practice stopped due to its alleged attacks on civilians. However, the U.S. has not given any indication that it would stop employing drones.

In Pakistan's parliament's new guidelines for improving U.S.-Pakistan relations, which were released in March 2012, the government called for stopping drone attacks immediately.

In the past, the Pakistani government had allegedly cooperated with the U.S. attacks. It is widely believed, however, that for fear of incurring popular wrath, the government has not publicly acknowledged it.

For its part, the U.S. has not owned up to any civilian casualties due to the drone attacks despite several reports claiming otherwise.

There has been a sharp decline in the number of drone attacks since last year. In November 2011, a NATO drone attack killed more than 20 Pakistani soldiers.

According to an AFP report quoting the think-tank The New America Foundation, 1,715 to 2,680 people have been killed due to drone strikes in Pakistan during the last eight years.