(Previous Incident Code: Ob222 )

A US drone allegedly carried out at least two strikes in Kurram Agency on June 20th, the first strike described below and the two others in Ob223 and Ob223c.

While many sources reported that a total of up to 12 people – by some referred to as militants – were killed in the first two strikes, some specifically reported that between two and seven were killed in the first strike alone.

Thus, it was reported that up to seven people were killed in a double-tap attack on rescuers in the first of a two strikes in Kurram Agency, a rare target.

Five initially died when a car was destroyed. As tribesmen attempted aid, drones killed a further two people, local official Noor Alamtold Associated Press. “As tribesmen rushed to the scene, the vehicle was struck again, killing two more people, he said.”

However, the Bureau of Investigative Journalism’s own researchers in Waziristan, while reporting that all of those died were civilians, said that no rescuers were killed. The Express Tribune also reported:

“Those killed were said to be affiliated with the Haqqani network, however, local sources said the deceased were local tribesmen.”

According to Dawn and others the targets were in a stronghold of Fazal Saeed Utezai, a powerful local militant commander. Others said that out of the total of 11 killed, nine were “foreigners” – a term often used to describe foreign militants.

However, because several reports only described the killed as “people” and not specified as militants, civilian harm cannot be ruled out.

The same goes with the several people that were reported wounded.