(Previous Incident Code: Ob299 )

Bibi Mamana, a 65 or 67-year-old midwife, was killed and at least six of her grandchildren were left burned and with shrapnel injuries in an apparent ‘double-tap’ strike by CIA drones. Villagers claimed the drones targeted the woman and children as they walked from a field to the house.

Mamana, the wife of retired 72-year-old headmaster Reshmeen Khan (aka Warshameen Jaan Haji or Dasreshmeen Jan), was the only confirmed death of up to seven people reported killed in a village 13 km east of Miranshah.

Initial reports of the strike were confused. Up to five alleged militants were said to have perished. A house and vehicle were reportedly destroyed. But the death toll was reduced to one after detailed examination of the strike by Amnesty International for their 2013 report.

In January 2014 the Bureau published an internal Pakistani record of CIA drone strikes. It listed this strike as killing one person – though it did not specify if a civilian was killed or not. The assessment of the attack said, “at about 1440 hours, US Drone fired two missiles at agriculture land situated in between the two houses.”

The injured children were later named by The News as “18-year old Kaleemur Rahman (aka Kalemullah) son of Siddiqur Rahman; Shahidur Rahman, 12, son of Rasool Badshah, a student of 7th class; Zubair Khan, 11, son of Rafiqur Rahman, 6th class; Samad Rahman, 9, son of Siddiqur Rahman, 5th class; and two girls, a four-year old Asma daughter of Rafiur Rahman and five-year old Sairadaughter of Atiqur Rahman.”

A later report in Allvoices reported that eight children were wounded; in addition to Kaleemur, Samad, Shahidur (who it said was 12), Zubair and Asma, it named Nabeela (aka Mabeela or Nabila), aged eight; Naima, aged seven and Rehman, 15.

The children were gathering wood for Eid al Adha with their grandmother when the missile hit, Allvoices reported, and the children were later moved to Peshawar for treatment. Possibly also killed was ‘a foreigner’ although his identity could not be confirmed. Military officers said civilians as well as militants were in the house. However a security official said, “it was a militant compound used to store arms and ammunition.” He added, “Three militants were killed. The casualties were not high because there [are] not many militants inside.” Intelligence officials told Associated Press that two men were also injured.

Amnesty International provided the Bureau with photographs of letters letters from the Political Agent, the Islamabad-appointed administrator responsible for all North Waziristan, confirming their investigation concluded a drone strike killed Bibi Mamana.

The letters, dated in early 2013, also confirm the agent received the family’s application for compensation.

Drones remained over the area after the attack, reportedly hampering rescue efforts, and an anonymous foreign ministry official condemned the strike. Local residents said three cows or a buffalo and two goats also died. Apparently the livestock were to be sacrificed at the Muslim festival of Eid al Adha on October 26.

Both BBC’s Panorama and The London Times subsequently reported that the attack was a ‘double-tap’ strike. One drone fired two missiles ‘five to seven‘ minutes before a second volley was released. The drones attacked at around 2.45pm according to Mamana’s family who spoke to The Times while receiving treatment in a Peshawar clinic.

Nabeela told the BBC’s Jane Corbin that her grandmother and she were returning to the house when the first missile struck. “It hit the ground behind us. We ran towards the house. Granny was in front and was hit by another missile.” The first strike hit a field near the family’s house, Nabeela told The Times. The paper reported she was sat 20m from the impact and was injured in the arm by shrapnel. She said she saw the two missiles head towards her, “They were following each other with fire at the back. When they hit the ground, there was a loud noise.” Atiq and Rafiq, Manama’s sons, said militants had passed through the village before but said none were there when the strike hit.

In December 2012 another of Manama’s sons Ishqur Rehman protested outside the Miranshah Press Club. He was demonstrating against relatives of drone strike victims not being considered for compensation alongside families of the civilian casualties of Pakistan Army operations.

In 2013 Rafiq told al Jazeera a Pakistani official wrote to the family agreeing the attack was a tragedy, Mamana and her grandchildren were innocent, and the strike was launched by a US drone.