Strike On Pakistan Islamic School Kills 9

Suspected U.S. missiles struck a Taliban-linked school in northwest Pakistan on Thursday, killing nine people in an apparent sign of U.S. frustration with the country's anti-terror efforts, intelligence officials said.

The strike came hours after Parliament warned against "incursions" on Pakistani soil in a resolution that also called for reviewing the national security strategy and making dialogue with militants the highest priority.

The suspected U.S. missiles hit the religious school on the outskirts of Miran Shah, the main town in the militant-infested North Waziristan region, four intelligence officials said.

Relying on informants and agents in the area, two officials said nine people were killed, including four pulled lifeless from the rubble hours after the strike, and two others were wounded.

The religious school belonged to a local pro-Taliban cleric, the intelligence officials said. The cleric has been linked to veteran Taliban commander Jalaluddin Haqqani, considered a top foe of the United States, they said.

The intelligence officials gave the information on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

Militants in the northwest are blamed for rising attacks on U.S. and NATO forces in neighboring Afghanistan as well as surging suicide attacks within Pakistan.

The cross-border missile attacks have angered many Pakistani lawmakers and the pro-U.S. government has protested them as violations of the country's sovereignty.

The parliamentary resolution was vague and lacking in details, apparently a result of political compromise after two weeks of closed-door debate.

The document did not directly mention two of the most divisive issues surrounding the terror fight: army offensives in the northwest and calls for unconditional talks with the extremists.

The major opposition parties recognize the need for military action against the insurgents but rarely forcefully express this because they need to maintain support among ordinary Pakistanis who are deeply suspicious of the war.

The seven-month old government - which is desperate for lawmakers to support its military offensive - hailed the 14-point document as a "historic moment for the country."

"This will definitely help to improve the situation and to rid the country of the menace of terrorism," Information Minister Sherry Rehman said.

The resolution calls for an "independent foreign policy," a sign of wariness of American influence. But it also states Pakistan will not let its soil be used for terrorist attacks elsewhere - an apparent nod to U.S. complaints about militants hiding in northwest Pakistan.

The resolution also alludes to the U.S. missile attacks, stating that Pakistan "stands united against any incursions and invasions of the homeland, and calls upon the government to deal with it effectively."

While saying dialogue "must now be the highest priority," it stipulates that talks should be pursued with those "elements" willing to follow the constitution and the "rule of law."

The United States currently conducts approximately 30 unmanned combat air patrols, 24 hours a day, largely over Iraq and Afghanistan, but a senior Air Force officer told The Associated Press that by the end of September 2011, the goal is to have 50.

Scrambling to meet commanders' insatiable demands for unmanned aircraft, the Air Force is launching two new training programs, including an experimental one that would churn out as many as 1,100 desperately needed pilots to fly the drones over Iraq and Afghanistan.

As many as 700 Air Force personnel have expressed some interest in the test program, which will create a new brand of pilot for the drones, which are flown by remote control from a base in Nevada.

The new drone operators will learn the basics of flying a small manned plane, but will not go through the longer, more rigorous training that their fighter jet brethren receive.