US drone strike killed American and Italian citizens held captive by al-Qaida
Thursday, April 23, 2015 at 10:39AM A US counter-terrorism operation in January killed two hostages, one American and one Italian, held by al-Qaida in the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan, the White House announced on Thursday.
Barack Obama is due to make a statement shortly about the deaths of Warren Weinstein, an American held by al-Qaida since 2011, and Giovanni Lo Porto, an Italian national who had been an al-Qaida hostage since 2012.
“Analysis of all available information has led the intelligence community to judge with high confidence that the operation accidentally killed both hostages,” Obama’s press secretary Josh Earnest said in a statement.
“The operation targeted an al-Qaida-associated compound, where we had no reason to believe either hostage was present, located in the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan. No words can fully express our regret over this terrible tragedy.
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