Petraeus urged to end drone strikes

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Nov. 3 (UPI) -- Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is urging a top U.S. military commander to halt drone missile attacks targeting Taliban militants inside Pakistan.

Zardari, meeting Monday in Islamabad with Gen. David Petraeus, the new head of the U.S. Central Command, said the attacks are causing problems for the government because they are highly unpopular with the public and are inflaming anti-American sentiment, ABC News reported.

"Continuing drone attacks on our territory, which result in loss of precious lives and property, are counterproductive and difficult to explain by a democratically elected government," a government news release quoted the president as telling Petraeus. "It is creating a credibility gap."

Instead of drone attacks, Zardari said, the two countries should focus "more on enhanced coordination and intelligence-sharing."

ABC said the United States has launched at least 15 attacks inside Pakistan in the last two months, including a Special Forces ground incursion on Sept. 3. The United States has insisted the drone attacks have worked by killing midlevel Taliban and al-Qaida militants who direct cross-border attacks into Afghanistan.