Pakistani soldiers killed in Swat

22/10/2008| IslamWeb

At least 15 Pakistani paramilitary soldiers and five pro-Taliban fighters have been killed in a clash in the northwestern Swat valley, police say.

 

The fighting broke out on Tuesday in the Kabal area, a stronghold of Pakistani Taliban fighters, after a roadside bomb exploded by a paramilitary convoy.

 

Noor Rehman, a police officer in Kabal, said: "After the exchange of fire that lasted for several hours, more than 20 troops went missing, but today we found 15 dead bodies at the site."

 

He said six soldiers were still missing.

 

A military spokesman in Swat also confirmed the incident and said security forces had foiled a suicide attack on Tuesday and destroyed a explosives-laden vehicle in the area.

 

Swat battleground

 

For the past year, security forces have been fighting loyalists of pro-Taliban leader Mullah Fazlullah, who has led a violent campaign to impose Taliban-style law in Swat, a mountain valley once popular with tourists.

 

Pakistan also launched a military offensive in August against fighters in the nearby Bajaur tribal region, bordering Afghanistan.

 

Pakistani tribal lands are regarded as safe havens for al-Qaeda and pro-Taliban fighters.

 

Violence has surged in these regions since 2007, and the number of US missile strikes by pilotless drone aircraft against fighter targets have increased in recent months.

 

 

PHOTO CAPTION

 

Map of Pakistan locating Swat valley

 

Al-Jazeera