by Jamil Bhatti
ISLAMABAD Scott Feldman Reds Jersey , Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- The latest U.S. unilateral drone attack in Pakistan would possibly enlarge the gaps between the two countries in their common course of anti-terrorism war, experts and analysts here said , expressing their concerns as the strikes are usually condemned by Pakistan as a violation of its sovereignty.
The latest U.S. strike took place on Friday, killing at least three people who were reportedly the members of Afghan Taliban in Pakistan' northwestern tribal region of Kurram Agency that bordering Afghanistan.
The unilateral U.S. military move came after Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi's call for joint efforts against militants in both Pakistan and Afghanistan earlier this week. Abbasi said that any one-sided move will be counter-productive, hurting both countries' efforts for peace and fight against terrorism.
"I fear such unilateral acts will further worsen the Pak-U.S. relations in coming days," said Saeed Chaudhry, director of Islamabad Council for International Affairs, adding that the latest attack is a big blow to Pak-U.S. relations which has already gone low after U.S. President Donald Trump's serious criticism on Pakistan for hiding militants in its tribal areas bordering Afghanistan
Different circles in Pakistan, following the Trump's statement, were already expecting the resumption of the U.S. drone strikes in the tribal areas, which had been only a few since the departure of former U.S. President Barack Obama's administration.
According to statistics, at least 408 U.S. drone attacks have taken place in different areas of Pakistan since 2004 in which over 3,000 people, including a great number of civilians, were killed.
Experts believe that there is nothing principally wrong with the U.S. drone strikes inside Pakistan to take out dangerous terrorists, as long as these are conducted with the explicit permission of the Pakistani government, otherwise public pressure will force Pakistani authorities to stand against such unilateral actions.
Furthermore, the drone strikes are highly unpopular among the Pakistani public as they also kill common people indiscriminately. A number of rallies and litigations against American secret agency's personnel who are responsible for such attacks were seen in Pakistan in the past.
Shahzad Akbar, an advocate who is contesting legal cases against U.S. intelligence personnel for Pakistani victims of drone strikes, opined that if Trump pushes for such campaign again, it will really only be punishing innocent men, women, and children.
Official sources revealed that Pakistan, which gave stern reactions to Trump's statement, has decided to lodge a strong formal protest with the United States over the drone strike by summoning the U.S. ambassador to the Foreign Office in Islamabad.
Supporting the recent development, Chaudhry said it's Pakistan's right to protest against the unwanted U.S. attacks which are an attempt to undermine Pakistan's successes in the war on terror.
The recent tension escalation between Pakistan and the United States prompted Pakistan to seriously mull over bringing changes into its foreign policy, especially its role in the war on terror and peace process in Afghanistan, most probably on its own terms.
Aslam Khan, a security analyst working for the Urdu daily Nawai Waqt, thought that Washington has put more wood into the fire in Afghanistan and overlooked the option of a political solution to the issue.
"I feel that the United States has resumed its unilateral strikes inside Pakistani territory with little regard for its consent and sovereignty," said Khan, adding that it is a very crucial time for Pakistan to answer the question of what to do next.
Following the Trump's policy remarks about Pakistan, heads of the Pakistani government and armed forces ensured the nation that Pakistan will fight the war on terror "on its own terms" and "nobody can force us to do what we don't want to do."
Taimur Shumail, a policy analyst at the University of South Asia, urged the world to comprehend the nature of terrorism in the region and Pakistan's intensive response to it, rather than only pressurizing and scapegoating it.
Since 2014, Pakistan has taken substantial steps against terrorism, including the launch of several successful military operations, sharing information on terrorist organizations and their safe havens inside Afghanistan with U.S. and Afghan officials, and banning many outlawed groups and their financial sources.
U.S., NATO, and Afghan forces should follow Pakistan's benchmark successes and efforts against terrorism by starting operations against terrorists who are hiding in Afghanistan, said Shumail.
And Pakistani civilian and military leadership has always complained about the forces' inaction in combating militants hiding in Afghanistan and launching attacks in Pakistan.
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