SOUTH WAZIRISTAN(National Times)- A local cleric was killed and two other persons were injured in a suspected quadcopter attack near a mosque in Landi Doag area of Birmal tehsil in Lower South Waziristan on Monday evening, police and local sources said.

They said three people sustained injuries in the attack and were rushed to the District Headquarters Hospital in Wana, where one of the injured identified as Maulana Amanullah succumbed to his wounds. The other two injured, who were said to be brothers and identified as Mohammad Zubair and Jahanzeb, were under treatment at the hospital.

The slain Maulana Amanullah, 34, son of Hayat, was a resident of Landi Doag belonging to Karamzkhel tribe. Several suspected quadcopter strikes have been reported in South Waziristan over the past year.

Residents said such incidents created fear and uncertainty among the civilian population and disrupted daily life.

Meanwhile, the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl, Lower South Waziristan chapter, condemned the incident, expressing grief over the death of Maulana Amanullah.

In a statement, the party called for a transparent and impartial investigation into the suspected attack, urging the authorities to identify those responsible and make the findings public.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf MNA Zubair Wazir in a social media post also condemned the attack, expressing grief over the killing of the cleric and prayed for the recovery of the injured.

He said that “continued insecurity, oppression, the excessive use of force, and violence had plunged the entire region into an atmosphere of fear, insecurity and uncertainty”.

“Today, people no longer feel safe. Neither homes, nor mosques, nor madrassas, nor even the lives of innocent children are secure,” he said.