DHAKA: Pakistani activists have blocked the main supply route for provisions destined for Nato troops in Afghanistan to protest against US drone strikes.

Opposition politician Imran Khan called for the action and said it would continue until American drone attacks in north-west Pakistan came to an end.

He blames the drones for causing civilian deaths and for crushing any chance of peace with the Taliban, reports the BBC.

But the timing of the campaign has led many to accuse him of appeasement.

It comes almost a month after Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud was killed in a drone strike at a compound in North Waziristan.

He had given some indications he might be prepared to talk but his death reportedly came just a day before a team of mediators was due to meet him.

His successor Mullah Fazlullah, a militant with a savage reputation, appears to have rejected any peace initiative.

BDST: 1432 HRS, NOV 26, 2013