40 militants 'killed' in Baizai region of Af-Pak border

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Wasim Qadri

30 June, 2011

Forty militants have been supposedly killed by the Pakistani army with the help of jets and choppers. Although raids and casualties have been confirmed, authorities still doubt the number of militants killed.

HEAVILY ARMED Pakistani troops have allegedly killed 40 militants in a fractious stretch bordering Afghanistan over the last three days, a commander heading the operations confirmed on Thursday. In the restive area of Baizai in Mohmand, Brigadier Aftab Ahmad affirmed that the troops led by him have destroyed around 17 hideouts used by the militants.

He told the media that militants were regularly attacking our posts on the Afghanistan border at Shonkari and Mithai and also targeting goods vehicles going to Afghanistan. Stepping up its artillery in Ghalanai, the main town of Mohmand, Pakistan has been actively raiding the militant hideouts - under pressure from America. America also wants Pakistan to step up its operations against the Haqqani network linked with the al-Qaeda in North Waziristan region.

Speaking to the media after the closure of the operation, Ahmad also said that the operation was launched three days ago with the support of army aviation aircraft, helicopters, and fighter jets, and they have killed at least 40 militants. However, the count did not seem to have gone down well with Maqsood Hussain, government personnel in Baizai. Hussain has confirmed the raid but he was unsure about how the Pakistani forces reached to the count of 40.

Interestingly, Mohmand is the breeding ground for all the terror related activities where outfits like Taliban and al-Qaeda plan attacks on Pakistani, Afghani and Western targets.