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Subscribe to RSSISLAMABAD -- Militants attacked a hilltop army position in volatile northwest Pakistan early Friday, leaving at least 33 dead in the latest skirmish in a campaign in which neither side appears to have the upper hand.
At least 10 Pakistan army soldiers were killed and seven others injured in the remote Tirah valley of Khyber tribal region, in a militant attack on three security checkpoints. A senior military official in Khyber tribal region said the soldiers killed 23 militants in retaliation.
"Dozens of militants attacked the three recently established security checkpoints in the area which led to heavy fighting between the two sides," an unnamed military official told NBC News.
Images of daily life, political pursuits, religious rites and deadly violence.
Pleading anonymity, he said helicopters had been sent to the mountainous area to bring the bodies and injured soldiers to Peshawar.
Casualties could not be independently verified and militants often dispute official accounts, Reuters reported.
Another security official told NBC News the security forces had recently captured important militant positions and made it difficult for the Taliban fighters to easily move from Khyber to Orakzai, Kurram and North Waziristan.
Several Pakistani military offensives in the tribal regions such as Khyber have failed to crush militant groups.
Stalemate at the border
The insurgency is led by the Pakistani Taliban, formally known as the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, which has an active faction in Khyber.
The military campaign along the entire border region and across several tribal agencies involves more than 100,000 Pakistani troops, but it has effectively reached a stalemate in many areas.
Formed in 2007, the TTP is an umbrella organization of militant groups allied with the Afghan Taliban and al-Qaida. It pledged to overthrow the Pakistani government after the military stepped up operations against militants five years ago.
Khyber is one of seven ethnic Pashtun tribal regions along the porous border which have never come under the full control of the state. Militants have taken advantage of the area's lawlessness to set up strongholds.
Khyber is one of the main land supply routes to Afghanistan for U.S.-led NATO troops, suspended by Pakistan after a cross-border clash in November last year that left 24 Pakistani soldiers dead.
Meanwhile on Friday, unknown gunmen opened fire at a car and shot dead an inspector of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) in Peshawar.
An official of the Michani police said Inspector Bashir Khan was traveling in a car along with his son when unidentified gunmen opened fire at him.
He died on the spot, while his injured son was taken to hospital.
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Mushtaq Yusufzai, NBC News producer in Islamabad, and Reuters contributed to this report.
Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.
Leave a Comment:
There is one constant. Regardless of where on this earth you are from, our children are so beautiful. We owe them a better world to inherit.
so let's get out of this cesspool
No, the old timers need to brainwash children, so they can strap bombs on them. The samething was done in NAM.
So, 'insurgents' attacked and killed 33 miltary. Will there be riots in the street? Will 'insurgents' be dragged out and killed?
I'll hold my breath on that....
No two opinions.
But Islamic hardliners bring up these very children to hate other religious people and then train them to kill any one declared as infidels too.
Jihad starts right at young age!
Here Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are the most guilty criminals breeding international liabilities and curses on earth!
That same beautiful child will grow up with the intent and hate to kill you. Muslims are killing muslims... what does that tell you???
Stalemate means that so far no one from the TTP or the Haqqani Network is one step closer to getting their hands on Pakistani nukes. So far so good?
Let Pakistan deal with Pakistan. Leave us out of it. If it looks like they will threaten the US, then turn certain areas into literal ashtrays...
They wanted us out so they could harbor fugitives, so let's stay out of it...
It is the best option.
If we go in between even to help, all will join in killings the "infidels."
Leave them alone and they are best in the business of killing each other!
More their battles mean: it will be a breather for infidels and less international liabilities to handle.
You really believe radical Islamist sects bent on hatred for the west that might eventually get their hands on nuclear warheads will leave us alone?
Radical Islamic terrorists are waging wars of aggression on many fronts for world domination. The terrorists killing Pakistanis are the same criminals killing our troops in neighboring Afghanistan who are there to help protect Afghanistan from them. Hopefully, nuclear armed Pakistan will wake up from their delusion and defeat those murdering extremists before they conquer their country.
I'm so happy they are going after eah other, no US troops involved just plain hatered for each other. I say give both sides the bomb so this crap can end the way it should.
let's get out, let's stop being a target. If they decide to stalk U.S., drop the Big Heater or turn India loose on them
The important question is where do these TTP guys get their weapons, training, and money from? TTP is a worst enemy of Pakistan, so obviously Pakistan is not supplying. It is interesting to know that based on evidence published over time, most weapons found were either US made or made by India. One wonders that is it really Pakistanis fighting Pakistanis?
We should really get out as we have enough of our own. Let India and Pakistan work this one out.
Pakistan has too many impure Muslims.
Islamic holy warriors should declare jihad on them and clean the whole of Pakistan at a faster rate to qualify for 72 virgins.
Otherwise, Allah will be very unhappy too!
Never missing a beat to target muslims - typical of an Indian disguised as Anglo Saxon.
BlueCollar: Your posts are typical of Muslim traitors in non-Muslim nations.
You people ask for Muslim nations, ruin them and then run and take refugee using different Ramadan style soap operas.
That is what Muslims did in Pakistan.
Once you international liabilities and curses on earth enter a non-Muslim nation, then you start your anti-social and subversions from within activities back again.
You, Paki/Muslim, why don't you leave us alone and go back to your Muslim nation? You traitors don't deserve to be in a non-Muslim nation.
Your cult has be a liability since it was born.
Like I said earlier in my comments - you are an Indian masquerading as American with pseudo anglo saxon name. No one spews venom as much as you do against muslims. Keep it up. So far you haven't succeeded.
Why is Pakistan not outraged over this attack? I guess it's OK for insurgents to kill army folks, but it's not OK for US forces to return fire against Paki army camps when fired upon. Double standard, I suppose.