US drone strike kills seven in Pakistan | World news | guardian.co.uk

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US embassy employee Raymond Davis, who is accused of killing two Pakistanis in Lahore in late January. Photograph: Arif Ali/AFP/Getty Images

A US drone attack has killed seven alleged militants, including some thought to be of Arab origin, in a Pakistani tribal region along the Afghan border, Pakistani intelligence officials said.

The strike was the first since the arrest of Raymond Davis, a US embassy employee who shot two Pakistanis in late January. There had been speculation that Washington had suspended the use of drones as it wrestled with Pakistan over whether the American has diplomatic immunity and should be freed.

According to the Pakistani intelligence officials, three missiles hit a house overnight in the village of Kaza Panga in the South Waziristan tribal region. Arabs and Turkmen were believed to be among the dead, they said.

Pakistan's tribal regions are key hideouts for Taliban and al-Qaida fighters, including many from other countries. While Pakistan's military has waged offensives in various parts of the north-west, the US has also used drone-fired missiles to target insurgents there.

The frequency of the missile strikes – often more than one a week – dropped to zero after Davis was detained for shooting two Pakistanis in the eastern city of Lahore on 27 January. The US has demanded his release, arguing Davis was acting in self-defence against robbers and has diplomatic immunity from prosecution because he works for the US embassy.