Al-Qaeda was target of Bajur attack: US
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
Islamabad, Nov 2, IRNA
Pakistan-Bajur
The White House on Wednesday backed Islamabad's claim that this week's missile strikes on a seminary in Bajur intended to kill Al-Qaeda militants.
Dawn newspaper quoted Press Secretary Tony Snow as saying in a briefing at the White House that the airstrikes were directed at Al-Qaeda militants.
Commenting on the civilian casualties, he said that the US had also experienced in Afghanistan that Al-Qaeda does everything it can to get civilians killed in such operations.
The White House spokesman praised President Pervez Musharraf's contribution to the war on terror, saying he has shown courage and determination.
Meanwhile, a State Department official told Dawn that he had not had any indication that the US had been involved in any means in the military strike.
"We do generally have an intelligence coordination relationship with the government of Pakistan but (I am) not aware of any coordination on this particular strike," he said.
"Maybe an exchange in the past contributed to it but there has been no US involvement in this particular attack," he added.
The official said the government of Pakistan had informed the US that all those killed in the strike were militants and "we don't have any other independent means of verifying that."
Asked if the US would condemn the loss of life, the official said: "If there was a loss of innocent life, we certainly regret the loss of any innocent life."
The official, when asked if he was worried about the consequences of the Bajur strike, said: "We understand that the decision was rooted in Pakistan's concerns about the way in which this facility was being used for training terrorists."
"Pakistan has been a consistent partner and we trust their judgment on these issues," the official added.
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