Protests over fatal missile strike

PAKISTANIS yesterday protested against a suspected American missile strike that intelligence officials said killed a British citizen linked to a plot to blow up jetliners, saying their Western-allied government must stop the cross-border attacks.

Pakistani intelligence officials said British citizen Rashid Rauf died in Saturday’s raid, but there was no independent corroboration of the death.

His death would be a blow to al-Qaida and Taliban extremists believed to be sheltering in the lawless Pakistan-Afghanistan border region. It would also bolster US claims that missile strikes on extremist strongholds in north-western Pakistan are protecting the West against another September 11-style terrorist attack.