By By Ken Hanly Oct 29, 2013 in Politics Islamabad - Rafiq ur Rehman is a primary school teacher in North Waziristan a tribal area in Pakistan. In October of 2012 while he was visiting a relative a drone missile hit near his home killing his mother and injuring his three children. “When it comes to national security matters like drone strikes, it’s important that we hear not only from the proponents of these attacks, but also from the victims. They have a unique perspective to share with Congress, and I hope that my colleagues will attend this important event.” The Congressional briefing was scheduled for last month but was postponed after Rehman's lawyer Shahzad Akbar was not granted a visa. Akbar's visa problems resulted in his being unable to speak at a human rights conference in April and also more recently as a speaker at a conference "Life Under Drones" at New York University. "It's not like my name is scratched because there is some sort of confusion. My name is blocked! Before I started drone investigations I never had an issue with US visas. In fact, I had a US diplomatic visa for two years." However, with Representative Grayson's assistance the Rehman's were able to make travel arrangements for today's meeting. Akbar will be present also. The Rehmans have no idea why their mother was targeted and killed while in her garden last year. "I was scared. I noticed that my hand was hurting, that there was something that had hit my hand and so I just started running. When I was running I noticed that there was blood coming out of my hand.I had seen my grandmother right before it had happened but I couldn't see her after. It was just really dark but I could hear [a] scream when it had hit her." Nabeela and Zubair were both rushed to a hospital but the remains of Rehman's mother had already been buried by the time he returned home. : “We got all sorts of different stories to begin with. One was that [Bibi] was preparing a meal for some militants and that's why she was killed. Another one was that there was a militant on a motorbike, right next to her. And then there's this story of, that there was a militant in a jeep, SUV, with a satellite phone, at the exact point that she's killed, but 10 minutes earlier. He used the phone and then he drives off into the distance. And then the drones come later and they kill her. So we found that that just really did not add up." Qadri found that the missile directly hit the mother, Momina Bibi indicating that she might have been the specific target. The US government has not clarified the situation. Qadri noted: "That secrecy, the unaccountability, the lack of lawfulness to it, is the key problem. In the context of Pakistan and just in the very micro sense, I don't think drones alone are the problem. It's the way they're used and it's the way they're used in isolation, ignoring the broader factors in that region." No matter what the number of casualties "I want them to know the drones are having an impact on our lives. It's hitting our elders. It took my mom. It's effected my children and we haven't done anything wrong." The Obama administration refuses to release its official tally of civilian casualties but claims that they are much lower than the estimates made by others that range from a few dozen to hundreds. “What we see with this shocking case of a 67-year-old grandmother in her garden with her grandchildren is the direct targeted victim of the drone attack. In other words the missile hit her directly, blew her apart and then a second attack against her surviving family members when they came to the scene. If nothing shocks the conscience of the Congress like this then nothing ever will. We see that this is a criminal action by the US government. The drone pilots who carried out the direct, violent death of this 67-year-old grandmother, they should be arrested and so should their superiors.” Of course the government refuses to reveal details of what went wrong. The hit was probably an error but the Rehman's certainly deserve answers and compensation as well. As " Whatever understandings there may or may not have been in the past, the present government has been very clear regarding its policy on the issue. We regard such strikes as a violation of our sovereignty as well as international law. They are also counter-productive.” There is not the slightest hint as to how Pakistan intends to actually stop the attacks, except as it has done in the past, raising objections that the US in practice ignores. There may be different actors but it is the same show as when there was an agreement. Rehman will speak to Congress about the incident today (Oct 29) as will two of his children Nabeela, nine years old, and Zubair, who is thirteen. Rep. Alan Grayso n a Democrat from Florida invited the Rehmans to the US. He said it is important that the Congress hear from those subject to the US drone program:The Congressional briefing was scheduled for last month but was postponed after Rehman's lawyer Shahzad Akbar was not granted a visa. Akbar's visa problems resulted in his being unable to speak at a human rights conference in April and also more recently as a speaker at a conference "Life Under Drones" at New York University. Akbar said:However, with Representative Grayson's assistance the Rehman's were able to make travel arrangements for today's meeting. Akbar will be present also.The Rehmans have no idea why their mother was targeted and killed while in her garden last year. Nabeela the daughte r said she was picking okra in the garden with her grandmother when she heard a loud noise:Nabeela and Zubair were both rushed to a hospital but the remains of Rehman's mother had already been buried by the time he returned home. The first reports of the strike claimed that up to four militants had been killed. A researcher for Amnesty International, Mustafa Qadri, saidQadri found that the missile directly hit the mother, Momina Bibi indicating that she might have been the specific target. The US government has not clarified the situation. Qadri noted:No matter what the number of casualties Rehman wants to tell Americans what it is like to live where there are drone attacks and to point out the damage the strikes cause individuals:The Obama administration refuses to release its official tally of civilian casualties but claims that they are much lower than the estimates made by others that range from a few dozen to hundreds. Brian Becker an anti-war activist said:Of course the government refuses to reveal details of what went wrong. The hit was probably an error but the Rehman's certainly deserve answers and compensation as well.As Ryan Devereaux wrote in the Guardian even a year after the incident Rehman has no idea why his mother was blown to bits while tending to her garden. The Pakistani government has consistently denied that it approved of the drone attacks although many thought that this was obviously the case. The Pakistanis were even thought to provide intelligence for targeting as well as glowing reports about the number of militants killed. A recent article in the Washington Post contains documents detailing the agreement. The new government of Nawaz Sharif denies that there is now any agreement although the attacks continue. A spokesperson for the Foreign Minister says:There is not the slightest hint as to how Pakistan intends to actually stop the attacks, except as it has done in the past, raising objections that the US in practice ignores. There may be different actors but it is the same show as when there was an agreement. More about North Waziristan Drone Strike, Pakistan, Rafiq ur Rehman More news from North Waziristan Dro... Pakistan Rafiq ur Rehman