Pakistani security forces have raided three hideouts of the Pakistan Taliban armed group near the Afghan border in recent days, triggering fierce clashes that killed at least 19 soldiers and 45 fighters, says the military.
The military on Saturday said 22 fighters were killed in Bajaur, a district in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Thirteen more were killed in a separate operation in South Waziristan district, it added.
In another clash in the Lower Dir area, seven soldiers and 10 rebel fighters were killed in a shootout after troops discovered a militant hideout, the army said in a separate statement.
The Pakistan Taliban, also known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP), claimed responsibility for the attacks in a message on social media. The group, which Islamabad says is based in Afghanistan, is separate to but closely linked with the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan.
The Pakistan Taliban uses Afghan soil to stage attacks in Pakistan, the military said, urging the Taliban government in Kabul “to uphold its responsibilities and deny use of its soil for terrorist activities against Pakistan."
Read more here.
