WHILE the government had expected an end to the US drone attacks inside Pakistan under President Obama, two strikes in South and North Waziristan Agencies left 21 killed on Friday. The attacks are the latest in a series of more than 30 drone attacks since the middle of last year. With the frequency of attacks increasing under the elected government, it is already being accused by the opposition of failing to safeguard Pakistan's territorial sovereignty. The fresh attacks are likely to create more problems for the administration in its cooperation in the War On Terror. What is more these would further add to the resentment against the US and provide the extremists and terrorists cause clbre. The government, which is seeking an elusive peace in FATA using all resources at its disposal, would face more difficulties. The fresh strikes would particularly provide the militants in Swat who continue to be on the rampage with further propaganda material. On Friday 22 persons had died in the area as a result of encounters with the law enforcement agencies. Despite this a provincial Minister and two legislators went to the area and called on the terrorists to lay down arms. Meanwhile Interior Advisor Rehman Malik expressed hopes of an early return of peace to the Swat valley. The attacks would particularly harm some of the understandings reached with the local tribesmen in the two otherwise restive Waziristan agencies, which have helped keep them by and large peaceful during the last several months. That the attacks should come at a time when President Obama is reviewing some the previous administration's policies in the conduct of the War On Terror is all the more disturbing. The decision to close the Guantanamo jail within a year, end coercive interrogations and wind up overseas CIA interrogation facilities were widely hailed across the Muslim world. The elimination of the most controversial tools employed to extort confessions from terrorism suspects was interpreted by The Washington Post as a declaration by the new President that he is ending the War On Terror as defined by his predecessor. Similarly hailing the decision, The Los Angeles Times expected the move to rehabilitate Washington's image abroad. One had hoped the decision would be followed by similar reversal of the Bush era policies, drone attacks being topmost on the list. The attacks came only a day after Present Obama had appointed Mr Richard Holbrooke known among other things for brokering the Drayton Accord, as special US envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan. The appointment was appreciated by Islamabad in the hope that it would lead to enhanced and fruitful engagement between the two countries to further the cause of peace and stability of the region. The drone attacks have dampened some of the expectations.