7 killed in US drone strike in northwest Pakistan

At least seven people were killed in a U.S. drone strike launched late Friday night in Pakistan's northwest tribal area of North Waziristan, reported local media on Saturday. Local Urdu TV channel Dunya said the strike took place at about 10:00 p.m. local time on Friday when US unmanned aircraft fired two missiles at a house suspected of being a militant hideout in the Shawal area of North Waziristan, a militancy-plagued tribal region bordering Afghanistan. This is the first US drone strike since Nawaz Sharif became the new prime minister of Pakistan two days ago. In his maiden speech delivered to the National Assembly as the country's new prime minister on June 5, Sharif vowed to solve the US drone issue and called the US to halt its drone strikes in the country. Friday's US drone strike is also the 14th of its kind in Pakistan in 2013. At least 80 people have reportedly been killed in such strikes since the beginning of this year.