Incoming Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has issued a statement angrily condemning last week’s US drone strike, insisting it was a violation of Pakistani sovereignty as well as a violation of international law.
Sharif summoned US embassy officials to deliver the complaint to the Obama Administration. Anger over the attack extends beyond the incoming ruling party, with opposition leader Imran Khan also slamming the attack as showing "hostile intent" to the new Pakistani government.
The Obama Administration’s policy of drone strikes has driven considerable anti-US sentiment in Pakistan, and was a driving factor in this month’s Pakistani election, in which a ruling party perceived as weak on the attacks saw its representation evaporate in the face of Sharif and Khan both running in opposition to the drones.
The Wednesday attack was particularly onerous for the Sharif government, since the Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the targeted militant faction, was being courted for peace talks by Sharif, and has withdrawn from those talks in the wake of the attack.
The US is unapologetic over the attacks, with Secretary of State John Kerry insisting that attacks are legal because of 9/11, and that the killing of suspects "is necessary in order to protect US lives."
