ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The United States has carried out more than 400 drone strikes in Pakistani territory since June 2004 while an average of 3.2 people were killed in each attack.
The Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ), a London-based news organisation, said in its recent report that 18 drone strikes were carried out in Pakistani territory in October this year alone.
The figures released by the TBIJ also showed that only 84 people out of the 2,379 killed in US drone strikes in Pakistan since June 2004 were identified as al-Qaeda militants.
The US drone attacks come as the Pakistan military continues its offensive against the militants in the tribal areas.
In her weekly news briefing in Islamabad on October 30, the Foreign Office Spokesperson Tasneem Aslam termed the US drone strikes in Pakistani territory unnecessary as Pakistan is already taking decisive action against the terrorist elements.
“Pakistan has consistently maintained that these strikes amount to violation of our sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the spokesperson said.