2,000 Pakistanis rally against US drones

[The Northerner]

Source: Agence France-Presse

ISLAMABAD — Around 2,000 Pakistanis demonstrated outside the country's parliament on Friday to demand an end to US drone strikes, claiming they kill more innocent civilians than Taliban and Al-Qaeda leaders.

Cricket hero turned politician Imran Khan led the Islamabad rally, attended mostly by members of his Tehreek-e-Insaf (Movement for Justice) party, which is gearing up to contest its first general election.

A few dozen tribesmen from Waziristan, where most of the drone strikes are concentrated, also attended the peaceful demonstration.

Some young people in the crowd set fire to a wooden model of a drone, dancing around and shouting "No more drone attacks", "No to drones, no to USA", carrying big signs saying "Stop drone attacks in Pakistan".

Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i7mdF9WdN1F_RbFsv74GplsOQoDg

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

1. People are sick of Drones.

:think:

[closeupready]

2. Gosh who could have predicted that...?

:sarcasm:

[socialindependocrat]

3. Drones do the job!!

I would say that people pretty much know who their neighbors are.

If I knew the new people next door were insurgents

and

I knew there was a high probability of a drone strike

Then

I would move my family in with a neighbor for the time being.

I think these people wat to support the insurgents but they don't want to get killed
so they scream about civilian casualties to protect the bad guys.

I say we take our money and leave to show we have concern for the wishes of the
Afghan people. Then we can open talks with them when they start chopping off
the appendages of the Afghan people when they re-institute Sharia law.

Then go back and send in the drones!!!

Can't have it both ways, people!!!!

[ixion]

4. The Corporate Police State thanks you for your support.

:puke:

The number of war hawks that have emerged on this board since Obama's election is sad, to say the least.

[socialindependocrat]

7. It's not that I want the war..

but I think the Afghan support of terrorists sucks.

And they take our money to boot.

It's just a game they play to get money from the U.S.

If we leave, they get what they get.

Personally, I think we should be helping them build farms
to feed their people and making sure our dollars are going
to benefit the people instead of sending it over there and
"hoping" it's used for the right purpose...

[Enrique]

9. the story is about Pakistan and you're talking about Afghanistan

that, and the general callousness of your comments suggests to me that you only have a vague sense, if any, of these people being human beings.

[OhioChick]

11. Map of Pakistan and Afghanistan.....

[irislake]

12. You won't leave Afghanistan.

You need the drugs. That's what you are there for. Plus the pipeline. Your troops are helping grow, protect and ship the poppy crops. The silly Taliban destroyed the crops and that is why it was necessary to go in there. And UNICOL.

The CIA is the world largest drug dealer. Dontcha know?

Read your Catherine Austin Fitts.

[irislake]

10. You are so right!

I rarely visit DU any more. The change is mind-boggling. I used to check in two three times a day. The pod people have taken over!

[Enrique]

6. everyone in Pakistan move in with your neighbor!

:eyes:

[socialindependocrat]

8. I should have said - relative, sorry

[cosmicone]

13. +1000 n/t

[msongs]

5. Obama is winning hearts and minds left and right - nt

[JCMach1]

14. Khan is now houseboy for ISSI

2000 is nothing. Give me 10000 rupees and can get you at

least 5k

[Little Tich]

15. Wikipedia entry: Drone attacks in Pakistan

The United States government, led by the Central Intelligence Agency's Special Activities Division, has made a series of attacks on targets in northwest Pakistan since 2004 using drones (unmanned aerial vehicles). These attacks are part of the US' War on Terrorism campaign, seeking to defeat Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants in Pakistan. Most of these attacks are on targets in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas along the Afghan border in Northwest Pakistan.

These strikes are carried out by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and have increased substantially under the Presidency of Barack Obama. Generally the UAVs used are MQ-1 Predator and more recently MQ-9 Reaper firing AGM-114 Hellfire missiles. The drones have become a weapon of choice for the United States in the fight against al-Qaeda. Some media refer to the series of attacks as a "drone war". Pakistan's government publicly condemns these attacks but has secretly shared intelligence with Americans and also allegedly allowed the drones to operate from Shamsi Airfield in Pakistan until 21 April 2011 when 150 Americans left the base.

Assessments of the results of the attacks differ. Daniel Byman from the Brookings Institution suggests that drone strikes may kill "10 or so civilians" for every militant killed. In contrast, the New America Foundation has estimated that 80 percent of those killed in the attacks were militants. The Pakistani military has stated that most of those killed were hardcore Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism based on extensive research found that at least 385 civilians were among the dead out of a total of between 1658 and 2597 killed. The CIA believes that the strikes conducted since May 2010 have killed over 600 militants and not caused any civilian fatalities.

According to secret cables leaked by Wikileaks Pakistan's Army Chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani not only tacitly agreed to the drone flights but in 2008 requested Americans to increase them. However Pakistan's Interior Minister Rehman Malik said "Drone missiles cause collateral damage. A few militants are killed, but the majority of victims are innocent citizens," The strikes are often linked to Anti-American sentiment in Pakistan and the growing questionability of the scope and extent of CIA activities in Pakistan.

Read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drone_attacks_in_Pakistan

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It sure seems as if these folks have a genuine grievance. Civilians are not supposed to be targetted.