Peshawar: Three girls were killed and four other members of their family injured early on Sunday after munitions reportedly dropped from a quadcopter struck a house in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lower South Waziristan, local sources said.
The attack hit the home of Mohammad Gul Wazir in the Dinor subtribe area, according to residents cited by news agencies. The explosives struck the residence directly, killing three girls aged between six and 15 instantly, ANI reported.
Four other family members — including a woman and three young boys — suffered serious injuries. Neighbours and local residents rushed to the scene to carry out rescue efforts and took the wounded to the District Headquarters Hospital in Wana. Hospital officials confirmed the injured were receiving treatment and remained under observation.
At the time of reporting, Pakistani authorities had not issued an official statement on the incident, its cause, or who might be responsible. Locals criticised the lack of an authoritative response, saying the government’s inaction had failed to shield civilians.
The strike has left the local community grieving and demanding an independent and transparent probe. Residents urged officials to determine the facts and bring those responsible to account.
The Dawn, citing local sources, said similar suspected quadcopter attacks have been reported in several parts of Birmal tehsil — including Azam Warsak, Guldona Ghundai, Karmazi, Staff and Kalotai — and that such incidents have claimed civilian lives over time, heightening fear across the area.
Locals told reporters that security in Lower South Waziristan has worsened markedly over the past 18 months, pointing to an increase in bomb blasts, targeted killings, ransom kidnappings, extortion and assaults on police and security personnel. They urged authorities to take urgent steps to restore law and order.
The latest incident is part of a string of suspected drone attacks across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in recent weeks. Earlier this week, Dawn reported that a woman was killed and six family members injured in a suspected drone strike at Pastawana village in the Hassan Khel subdivision, about 50 miles south of Peshawar. In Bajaur district, police said a quadcopter was suspected of dropping an explosive device on a house that killed three people and injured 10 others. Last week, a suspected quadcopter attack in Bajaur’s War Mamund tehsil reportedly killed a child and injured a woman.
Residents say the recurrent incidents have deepened worries about civilian safety and are pressing for stronger security measures and greater accountability from authorities.
