4 Predators Strike Taliban Training Camp Inside Of Pakistan, 30 Killed

Holy crap. Now this is a serious hit for U.S. predators operating inside of Pakistan with four predator UAV's dispatched that fired at least four hellfire missiles on a Taliban training camp in tribal area of Kurram killing at least 30 Taliban. Yessssss! Now, the report here from The Long War Journal states that there isn't word of any top level Taliban commanders killed in this strike but that is not unusual - it usually takes a good three to five days to sift through the rubble and do some identification so we rarely here of names this soon. Here's some of the details of this awesome airstrike:

The US appears to be expanding its campaign of cross-border strikes into Pakistan after several unmanned US Predator aircraft conducted multiple attacks in the Taliban-controlled tribal agency of Kurram.
More than 30 people have been reported killed after four Predator aircraft launched at least four Hellfire missiles at a training camp in the Sarpal region that is run by Bahram Khan Kochi, a commander of Taliban forces operating inside Afghanistan, Geo News reported. The toll is expected to rise, as more bodies are thought to be under the rubble.
No senior al Qaeda or Taliban commanders have been reported killed at this time.
The Taliban have expanded their control into Kurram by backing the wave of sectarian fighting between Sunni and Shia in the region. The Shia have been forced into small enclaves in Parachinar and other areas as the Pakistani military has refused to come to their aid.
The Taliban have used Kurram as a training ground for their forces and have established several bases in the agency, an intelligence official familiar with the situation in Pakistan's tribal areas told The Long War Journal on the condition of anonymity.

Now, I want to call your attention to this from the article:

The Kurram strike is also the first reported attack inside the Kurram tribal agency. Prior attacks have focused on al Qaeda and Taliban compounds in the tribal agencies of North and South Waziristan as well as in Bajaur. One strike took place in Bannu, a region outside of the tribal areas.

The fact that this is a first in Kurram is a very, very good sign. It shows that the U.S. is expanding these UAV strikes and in my mind, it shows that perhaps the intel network is expanding as well. Not to mention, this has got to be sending shivers down the spines of top leadership of al Qaeda and Taliban - I have to believe that this strike alone is going to get some of the top people moving like ants during a thunderstorm.

US airstrike in Pakistan's Kurram tribal agency kills 30

The Taliban have used Kurram as a training ground for their forces and have established several bases in the agency, an intelligence official familiar with the situation in Pakistan's tribal areas told The Long War Journal on the condition of anonymity.
The Taliban in Kurram are led by Hakeemullah Mehsud, a rising star in the Pakistani Taliban. Hakeemullah is senior lieutenant and cousin of Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud; he is also a cousin of Qari Hussain Mehsud, the notorious Taliban commander who trains child suicide bombers in South Waziristan.
Hakeemullah has been leading operations against NATO's supply lines in Khyber and Peshawar. He also commands the Taliban in the Arakzai and Khyber tribal agencies.
Today's strike is the second by the US inside Pakistan in three days. A strike on Feb. 14 killed more than 25 Uzbek, al Qaeda, and Taliban fighters in South Waziristan.
The Kurram strike is also the first reported attack inside the Kurram tribal agency. Prior attacks have focused on al Qaeda and Taliban compounds in the tribal agencies of North and South Waziristan as well as in Bajaur. One strike took place in Bannu, a region outside of the tribal areas.
The recent airstrikes in South Waziristan and Kurram are also the first since Senator Dianne Feinstein, the chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, disclosed that the CIA was operating a covert air base that is used to conduct the attacks inside Pakistan. The Pakistani government has denied the existence of the base. But unlike previous attacks, no senior leader in the government or the military protested the strikes.