13 killed as US drone target Haqqani hideout in Pakistan

An American drone today struck the suspected hideout of Afghan Taliban warlord Sirajuddin Haqqani in Pakistan's north Waziristan, killing 13 militants, most of them from Afghanistan.

In the pre-dawn strike, the predator drone targetted the house in Danday Darpakhel area of North Waziristan believed to be used by Sirajuddin. The house was razed to a rubble.

Witnesses said 13 bodies were pulled out of the rubble. Several of the injured were reported to be in a critical condition, TV channels reported.

There was no immediate information whether the strike had taken out Sirajuddin Haqqani, an Afghan warlord who operates on both sides of the border. But, three women were confirmed among those killed, reports said.

Indications that a high-value target could be involved came as militants surrounded the compound and were using tractors to extricate the bodies and the debris, local residents said.

Reports said most of the people living in the compound targeted by the drone belonged to Afghanistan. Five houses were demolished in the attack.

Danday Darpakhel is known to have hideouts belonging to the Haqqani network which is run by Sirajuddin. The same village was hit last October, in a strike that left 11 militants, mostly foreigners, dead.

The sound of the missiles hitting the ground targets was so loud that it shattered window panes in Miranshah, about two kilometres from the the site of the attack.

The US has hit the tribal area bordering Afghanistan with 40 missile strikes since last year reportedly killing some top Taliban and al-Qaeda commanders.

The attack on Haqqani's hideouts comes close on the heels of an attack which killed the Pakistan Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud. The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan chief, whose slaying is disputed by his followers, also has offices near the building which was targetted today.

Sirajuddin is the elder son of Afghan tribal warlord Jalauddin Haqqani, who US commanders now count as a dangerous enemy.

Danday Darpakhel and areas nearby are strongholds of Siraj Haqqani, whose network is strong in eastern Afghanistan. His family runs a large school in the village. Haqqanis have been linked to major attacks in Afghanistan, including an attempt to kill president Hamid Karzai, suicide attack on a hotel in Kabul and bloody attack on Indian mission there.

Shortly after the missile attacks, suspected Taliban militants in apparent retaliation opened fire on four military check posts near Miranshah, and in the heavy exchange of fire three militants were reported killed and three paramilitary personnel wounded.