The US campaign of drone strikes in Pakistan’s northwestern tribal belt is terrorising civilians 24 hours a day and breeding bitter anti-American sentiment, researchers said yesterday.

The attacks in northwest Pakistan, where militants linked to Taliban and Al Qaeda have strongholds, have killed thousands of people since they began in June 2004, according to the report by experts from Stanford Law School and the New York University School of Law.

Aside from casualties, the “Living Under Drones” report said, the missile strikes are affecting daily life in the tribal areas, making people unwilling to gather in groups — even for weddings and funerals — for fear of being targeted.