A militant commander wanted by police for several incidents of sabotage and insurgency was among the 16 rebels killed during operations by troops in different areas of Kurram Agency.
Sixteen militants and three security personnel were killed in fresh clashes in Pakistan’s restive Kurram tribal region even as prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani today said the military operation against the Taliban in South Waziristan has ended.
A militant commander wanted by police for several incidents of sabotage and insurgency was among the 16 rebels killed during operations by troops in different areas of Kurram Agency, which has been affected by sectarian strife over the past two years.
The local administration of Kurram Agency also decided that members of the Shia Toori tribe will work with law enforcers to maintain peace during the Islamic month of Muharram. Sectarian clashes have occurred during Muharram in the past.
Talking to reporters in Lahore, Gilani said the offensive against the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan in South Waziristan Agency had been completed and troops were planning operations in other tribal areas. "The operation in South Waziristan has ended. Now there is talk of (an operation) in Orakzai Agency," Gilani said.
Replying to a question about the offer by Imran Khan, the cricketer-turned-politician, to broker peace talks with militants, he said some people had called for dialogue with terrorists while a military offensive was underway in Malakand and Swat valley.
"But the government, through the military operation, has cleansed the area of terrorist elements and restored peace in a limited time, besides embarking on the rehabilitation of two million (displaced people) within the shortest possible time of only 10 weeks," he added.
Interior minister Rehman Malik also told reporters that security forces were now carrying out "targeted operations" in South Waziristan. Such operations will be carried out wherever the government’s writ is challenged, he added.
The military says about 600 militants and over 60 soldiers have died in fighting in Waziristan since a campaign was launched there against the Taliban in October. Troops have secured most Taliban strongholds in the region but top militant leaders continue to be at large.
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