Unmanned drones are often the weapon of choice for the United States as it targets the Taliban and al-Qaeda in remote, rugged areas such as Pakistan's South Waziristan province, along the border with Afghanistan.

The use of so-called Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), which allow the military to operate in these highly dangerous areas, is expected to grow in the coming years with the Pentagon expected to buy 700 next year alone.

But the long-distance, remote-controlled warfare over Afghanistan and Pakistan is creating anger on the ground as pilots on another continent have inflicted heavy civilian casualties.

Al Jazeera's Patty Culhane reports.