Drone attacks had their utility, but violate national sovereignty : Pasha

ISLAMABAD: Former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Ahmed Shuja Pasha says, that drone attacks had their use but it violates national sovereignty.

These comments are part of the Abbottabad Commission report, which investigated how al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden evaded detection for nearly a decade, living in Pakistan.

The former ISI chief is further stated to have said, that there were no written agreements regarding drone strikes, however, he added that there was a political understanding between Pakistan and the United States.

The Americans had been asked to stop drone strikes because they caused civilian casualties, but "it was easier to say no to them in the beginning, but 'now it was more difficult' to do so," it quoted Ahmed Shuja Pasha.

"Admittedly the drone attacks had their utility, but they represented a breach of national sovereignty. They were legal according to American law but illegal according to international law," the report quoted the former ISI chief as saying.