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On 13 January 2006 the
Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
fired
missile In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocket i ...
s into the Pakistani village of
Damadola Damadola is a village in the Bajaur Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas in Pakistan, about from the Afghanistan border, it is located at 34° 48' 20N 71° 28' 0E at an altitude of 1082 metres (3553 feet). The village gained internatio ...
( ur, ڈمہ ڈولا) in the
Bajaur Bajaur District ( ps, باجوړ ولسوالۍ, ur, ) is a district in Malakand Division of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan. Until 2018, it was an agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, then during restructuring that merged ...
(Urdu: باجوڑ ) tribal area, about seven kilometres (4.5 miles) from the Afghan border, killing at least 18 people. Originally the Bajaur tribal area government claimed that at least four foreign members of
al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...
were among the dead. United States and Pakistani officials later admitted that no al-Qaeda leaders perished in the strike and that only local villagers were killed. The attack purportedly targeted
Ayman al-Zawahiri Ayman Mohammed Rabie al-Zawahiri (June 19, 1951 – July 31, 2022) was an Egyptian-born terrorist and physician who served as the second emir of al-Qaeda from June 16, 2011, until his death. Al-Zawahiri graduated from Cairo University with ...
, second-in-command of al-Qaeda after
Osama bin Laden Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until Killing of Osama bin Laden, his death in 2011. Ideologically a Pan-Islamism ...
, who was thought to be in the village.


Airstrike

The attack was carried out by four
CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...
-operated
unmanned An uncrewed vehicle or unmanned vehicle is a vehicle without a person on board. Uncrewed vehicles can either be under telerobotic control—remote controlled or remote guided vehicles—or they can be autonomously controlled—autonomous vehicl ...
Predator Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...
drones which launched four
Hellfire missiles The AGM-114 Hellfire is an air-to-ground missile (AGM) first developed for anti-armor use, later developed for precision drone strikes against other target types, especially high-value targets. It was originally developed under the name '' Heli ...
at a mud-walled compound, destroying three houses several hundred yards apart. Another report said that as many as 10 missiles were fired. The official number of dead is 18, including eight men, five women and five children, but other reports indicate that as many as 25 people were killed. Fourteen of the dead were said to be from the same family. There is confusion over the actual number killed, since reports claims that 13–15 of the dead were buried immediately. Some sources say this was "according to Islamic custom", others say they were buried "without customary funeral arrangements". The
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
(AP) reported that unnamed
Pakistani intelligence The Pakistani intelligence community ( ur, ) comprises the various intelligence agencies of Pakistan that work internally and externally to manage, research and collect intelligence necessary for national security. Consolidated intelligence orga ...
officials asserted that the attack was conducted based on intelligence that al-Zawahiri was invited to a dinner to mark the Islamic holiday of
Eid al-Adha Eid al-Adha () is the second and the larger of the two main holidays celebrated in Islam (the other being Eid al-Fitr). It honours the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son Ismail (Ishmael) as an act of obedience to Allah's co ...
at the compound that was targeted. In the days after the attack, it was reported that several foreign members of
al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...
were among the dead. The provincial government of Bajaur, where the attack took place, stated that "four or five foreign terrorists" were killed in the attack, and that "10 or 12" extremists had attended in all. ABC reported that al-Qaeda
bomb A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the Exothermic process, exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-t ...
maker and
chemical weapons A chemical weapon (CW) is a specialized Ammunition, munition that uses chemicals chemical engineering, formulated to inflict death or harm on humans. According to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), this can be an ...
expert
Midhat Mursi Midhat Mursi al-Sayid Umar ( ar, مدحت مرسي السيد عمر), also known as Abu Khabab al-Masri ( ar, أبو خباب المصري) (29 April 1953, Egypt – 28 July 2008, Pakistan) was a chemist and alleged top bomb maker for al-Qaeda an ...
was killed in the strike. According to Pakistani officials,
Khalid Habib Khalid Habib ( ar, خالد حبيب) (died October 16, 2008), born Shawqi Marzuq Abd al-Alam Dabbas ( ar, شوقي مرزوق عبد العليم دباس), was an ascending member of al-Qaeda's central structure in Pakistan and Afghanistan. His ...
, the al-Qaeda operations chief for Pakistan and Afghanistan, and Abdul Rehman al Magrabi, a senior operations commander for al-Qaeda, were also killed. It was reported that the al-Qaeda members were attending a "terror summit" called to funnel new money into attacks against US forces in Afghanistan. United States and Pakistani officials later admitted that none of those al-Qaeda members perished in the strike and that only local villagers were killed. Midhat Mursi and Khalib Habib were killed in two other missile strikes in 2008. Two Pakistani intelligence officials said Libyan-born
Abu Faraj al-Libbi Abu Faraj al-Libi ( ; ; أبو الفرج الليبي) (also transliterated al-Libbi ) is an assumed name or nom de guerre of a Libyan alleged to be a senior member of the al-Qaeda terrorist organization. His real name is Mustafa Faraj Muhammad M ...
, who was captured in Pakistan in May 2005, told interrogators that he had met al-Zawahiri last year at the home of Bakhtpur Khan, one of the thirteen villagers killed in the airstrike. After that confession, US and Pakistani intelligence agents, with the help of local tribesmen and Afghans, monitored Bakhtpur Khan's home.


Responses

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying it protested to US Ambassador
Ryan Crocker Ryan Clark Crocker (born June 19, 1949) is an American retired diplomat who served as a career ambassador within the United States Foreign Service and a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He has served as United States Ambassador to ...
over the "loss of innocent civilian lives." The Pakistani government angrily denounced the attack. Pakistan's Information Minister
Sheikh Rashid Ahmed Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad ( ur, ; born 6 November 1950) is a Pakistani politician who served as the 38th Interior Minister of Pakistan from 2020 to 2022. He is famous because of his smoking cigars and Laal Haveli. He is the founder and leader of A ...
called the attack "highly condemnable" and said the government wanted "to assure the people we will not allow such incidents to recur." Tension remained high throughout tribal areas. Angry Pakistanis protested against the strike, claiming it was illegal, and that the attack that killed innocent civilians. Thousands of tribesmen staged protests and a mob set fire to the office of Associated Development Construction, an ostensibly non-governmental organisation funded by the
US Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...
, in a sign of increasing frustration over a recent series of suspected US attacks along Pakistan's frontier with
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
. On Sunday 15 January, tens of thousands of Pakistanis took part in anti-US protests across the country. The largest demonstration was held in the city of
Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
where protesters chanted "
Death to America Death to America ( fa, مرگ بر آمریکا, translit=Marg bar Āmrikā; ) is an anti-American political slogan. It is used in Iran,Arash KaramiKhomeini Orders Media to End 'Death to America' Chant, Iran Pulse, October 13, 2013 Afghanistan, ...
" and "Stop
bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechanica ...
innocent people". Hundreds of
riot police Riot police are police who are organized, deployed, trained or equipped to confront crowds, protests or riots. Riot police may be regular police who act in the role of riot police in particular situations or they may be separate units organize ...
were deployed to control the crowds. A leader in the coalition of Islamic groups that organised the nationwide protests demanded that
General Musharraf General Pervez Musharraf ( ur, , Parvez Muśharraf; born 11 August 1943) is a former Pakistani politician and four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after the successful military takeover of th ...
step down. Also on 15 January, US politicians expressed regret over the deaths caused by the attack but said the airstrike was justified. "It's terrible when innocent people are killed; we regret that," said US Senator
John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...
. "We apologize, but I can't tell you that we wouldn't do the same thing again. We have to do what we think is necessary to take out al Qaeda, particularly the top operatives. This guy has been more visible than Osama bin Laden lately." Senator
Evan Bayh Birch Evans Bayh III ( ; born December 26, 1955) is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States senator from Indiana from 1999 to 2011 and the 46th governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997. Bayh w ...
blamed the Pakistani government for being unable to control the frontier, rhetorically asking "Now, it's a regrettable situation, but what else are we supposed to do? It's like the Wild,
Wild West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...
out there. The Pakistani border (with Afghanistan) is a real problem."
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
provided written legal authority to the CIA to hunt down and kill people designated as
enemy combatant Enemy combatant is a person who, either lawfully or unlawfully, engages in hostilities for the other side in an armed conflict. Usually enemy combatants are members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war. In the case ...
"high-value targets" without seeking further approval each time the agency is about to stage an operation. The CIA believes it possesses all the necessary approvals within its "counterterror" centre in
Langley, Virginia Langley is an unincorporated community in the census-designated place of McLean in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Langley is often used as a metonym for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), as it is home to its headquarters, the Geor ...
to fire missiles anywhere in the world, including Pakistan, when a high-value al-Qaida target is spotted. The agency doesn't require further clearance from the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
, local governments, or the CIA director to kill an al-Qaida operative. The purpose of this expanded authority is to expedite rapid action in case a
targeted killing Targeted killing is a form of murder or assassination carried out by governments outside a judicial procedure or a battlefield. Since the late 20th century, the legal status of targeted killing has become a subject of contention within and betw ...
opportunity is time-sensitive. On 30 January, a video showing al-Zawahri wearing white robes and a white turban, said the 13 January airstrike killed "innocents" and said the United States had ignored an offer from al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden for a truce.


See also

*
Chenagai airstrike The Chenagai airstrike took place on October 30, 2006, around 5:00 am local time. Missiles were fired at a madrassa in Chenagai village in Bajaur region of Pakistan. An eyewitness has stated that the madrassa was filled with local students who had ...
*
Gora Prai airstrike The Gora Prai airstrike was an airstrike by the United States that resulted in the deaths of 11 paramilitary troops of the Pakistan Army Frontier Corps and 8 Taliban fighters in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas, tribal areas. The ...
*
Drone attacks in Pakistan Between 2004 and 2018, the United States government attacked thousands of targets in northwest Pakistan using unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) operated by the United States Air Force under the operational control of the Central Intelligence ...
**
List of drone strikes in Pakistan Timeline 2004–2007 *18 June 2004: The first known U.S. drone strike killed 5–8 people including Nek Muhammad Wazir and two children, in a strike near Wana, South Waziristan. Pakistan's Army initially claimed the attack as its own work. *14 ...
*
Waziristan War The insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, also known as the War in North-West Pakistan or Pakistan's war on terror, is an ongoing armed conflict involving Pakistan, and Islamist militant groups such as the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Junda ...
*
2009 Makin airstrike 23 June 2009 Makin airstrike was an attack launched by Drone attacks on Pakistan by the United States, United States drones on a funeral procession in the city of Makin, Pakistan, Makin in South Waziristan, Pakistan.Aljazeera.net
– 18 killed in Pakistan air strike.

Pakistan fury as CIA airstrike on village kills 18. 15 January 2006

– Pakistanis say 17 killed in airstrike

– Pakistan: Terrorists Killed in US Strike 17 January 2006
Al-Qaeda chief dies in missile airstrike
''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' 1 June 2008 {{DEFAULTSORT:Damadola Airstrike 2006 in Pakistan January 2006 events in Pakistan Conflicts in 2006 History of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Airstrikes by town or city Airstrikes of the insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Government of Shaukat Aziz Deaths by drone strikes of the Central Intelligence Agency in Pakistan Pakistan–United States military relations United States military scandals