PARACHINAR, Pakistan — Pakistani security forces killed 29 militants yesterday in two troubled tribal regions near Afghanistan, officials said, as troops pressed on with operations aimed at flushing out insurgents.
Eighteen of the alleged militants died at a military checkpoint in the Orakzai tribal region. Lieutenant Colonel Tahir Akram, a spokesman for the paramilitary Frontier Corps, said the fighting involved insurgents who arrived from the nearby Khyber region to retake the checkpoint in Orakzai where the Taliban have a heavy presence.
He said the security forces repulsed the attack and captured four insurgents. Government forces evicted insurgents last week from the same checkpoint in Orakzai. The military began a major operation against insurgents in Orakzai in mid-March. Nearly 300 militants have been reported killed so far.
Later yesterday, Pakistani security forces clashed with militants in Kurram. The shootout left 11 suspected insurgents dead, an official said.
