CIA plans to step up drone use in Pakistan

WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- The CIA's use of drones to fire missiles at suspected al-Qaida and Taliban militants in Pakistan has been expanded, The New York Times reported.

The greater use of unmanned drones is tied to President Obama's plan to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, officials told the newspaper. The administration has told Pakistan it would like to expand the program from Waziristan to Baluchistan.

The drones firing missiles in Pakistan are controlled by C.I.A. officers in the United States. They can remain over a target for hours, sending information to their controllers, which officials said makes them less likely to kill civilians than manned air strikes.

The Obama administration hopes to push militants from both sides, closing down refuges on both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. The use of drones has increased since Obama became president in January.

The U.S. Air Force uses drones in Afghanistan.

While the drones are high-tech, estimates of their success at killing their targets and of civilian deaths vary.