Kabul, August 4 (RHC)-- More than two dozen people have been killed in two separate U.S. drone strikes in eastern Afghanistan. The attacks were carried out against suspected Taliban militants in the eastern province of Nangarhar, local Afghan officials said on Tuesday.

The casualties were caused after drones belonging to the U.S. military targeted militant hideouts near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in Nangarhar. Local officials confirmed that at least 26 people lost their lives in the attacks.

The U.S. regularly uses drones for airstrikes and spying missions in Afghanistan as well as Pakistan’s northwestern tribal belt near the Afghan border. While Washington claims the targets of the attacks are militants, witnesses maintain that, in most cases, civilians have been the victims of the airstrikes.

Widely seen as a violation of international law, the U.S has been carrying out drone operations in several countries, including Afghanistan, without authorization from the United Nations.