Sept. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Pakistan summoned the U.S. ambassador to protest yesterday's raid by helicopter-borne American special forces troops on a village in the northwest, saying the attack represented a ``grave provocation.''

Anne W. Patterson was called to the Foreign Ministry in Islamabad and a protest lodged, ministry spokesman Mohammad Sadiq said by telephone today. Patterson didn't confirm or deny the attack, he said.

Pakistan's military said seven ``innocent civilians'' were killed in the raid on Angoor Adda in South Waziristan in the tribal area bordering Afghanistan. U.S. commandos attacked al-Qaeda fighters in the village, the New York Times reported, citing unidentified U.S. officials. One child was killed in the attack, it said.

Asif Ali Zardari, a presidential candidate and the co-head of Pakistan Peoples Party, condemned the assault, which he said was an ``outrageous and unacceptable violation of the territorial integrity of the country,'' according to a party statement released today.

The raid may signal the start of a broader campaign by American special forces against Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters in Pakistan, which Defense Secretary Robert Gates has been advocating for months, the New York Times said, citing the officials.

`High Value Target'

``No high value target has been presented to us,'' Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi told Parliament today. ``Innocent civilians, including women and children, were targeted. Unfortunately, our concept of coordination wasn't considered.''

Pakistan's military said the assault was conducted by troops from NATO's International Security Assistance Force who landed in the village in two helicopters.

``Recent reporting in the media that ISAF conducted operations in Pakistan are completely false,'' the International Security Assistance Force said in a statement today. ``At no time are ISAF forces authorized to enter or land in Pakistan.''

Pakistan's military said in a statement it reserves ``the right of self defense and retaliation to protect our citizens and soldiers against aggression.''

June Strike

The raid followed a June strike, in which Pakistan said U.S. forces killed 11 Pakistani soldiers deployed at a post near the Afghan border. That attack strained ties between the U.S. and Pakistan, a key ally in the campaign against terrorism.

Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani condemned yesterday's killings. ``No external forces will be allowed to conduct attacks in Pakistan's territory,'' his office said in a statement issued in Islamabad.

Pakistan says it is tackling Islamic extremism using a strategy of negotiation, economic and political development and the selective use of military force. Gilani's government took office after opposition parties defeated supporters of Pervez Musharraf, the former president, in February's general elections.

``I will work to defeat the domestic Taliban insurgency,'' Zardari wrote in an article on The Washington Post's Web site today. ``The war we are fighting is our war. My party and I are struggling to save our nation.'' Zardari is running for president in a ballot by lawmakers on Sept. 6.

Musharraf, a U.S. ally, deployed more than 100,000 soldiers in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas to combat Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters crossing the 2,430-kilometer (1,510-mile) frontier it shares with Afghanistan.

Musharraf was forced to resign last month by the ruling coalition led by Gilani's Pakistan Peoples Party.

Ground Assaults

The U.S. had been wary of ordering ground assaults on Pakistani soil because it didn't want to undermine Musharraf, according to the New York Times. That is no longer a concern following his departure, according to the report.

Western intelligence agencies say al-Qaeda uses bases in Pakistan's tribal region to train, re-arm and plan attacks against troops in Afghanistan.

NATO has more than 53,000 soldiers in Afghanistan fighting supporters of the Taliban regime that was ousted by U.S.-led forces in late 2001. The U.S. has more than 19,000 soldiers under NATO command and about 16,000 in an American-led counterterrorism force.

To contact the reporter on this story: Khalid Qayum in Islamabad at kqayum@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: September 4, 2008 07:01 EDT