At least 11 people were killed in two U.S. drone strikes launched Monday night in Pakistan's northwestern tribal area of North Waziristan, Xinhua reported according to local media.
According to media reports, the first strike, which took place at about 8:30 p.m. local time in the Mir Ali area of the Miranshah district of North Waziristan, killed eight people when U.S. drones fired two missiles at a militant school in the afore-said area.
The second strike, which came only minutes later after the first strike, was said to target at a house in the same area, killing at least three people.
Monday night's U.S. drone strike came at a time when the U.S. Senator John Kerry arrived in Pakistan on Sunday night to discuss the ways to ease the tension between the United States and Pakistan following the unilateral action taken by the U.S. side to kill the al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil earlier this month.
The Pakistani side accused the U.S. unilateral action of violating its sovereignty and demanded the U.S. to take drastic steps to improve the damaged relationship between the two sides.
But local media reports said that John Kerry, during his talks with the Pakistani leadership, had adopted a very tough stand, demanding Pakistan to cooperate more in the anti-terror war or they could face losing the U.S. aid, which amount to 3 billion U.S. dollars a year.