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At least 17 members of Lashkar-e-Islam and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan killed in overnight shelling.
Security forces killed at least 17 militants in heavy overnight shelling in Khyber Agency, officials said on Saturday.
The militants were killed in Bara town after security forces repulsed an attack on a checkpost. “We have recovered 17 bodies of Lashkar-e-Islam and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan militants after killing them in overnight action in Khyber tribal district,” said a senior security official. “Our forces had responded to a joint attack by these two militant outfits. We are now handing over these bodies to the local administration for identification.”
Another official on the ground in Bara confirmed the killings.
Khyber is one of seven semi-autonomous tribal districts on the Afghan border, and militants have taken sanctuary there after fleeing strongholds in North Waziristan.
The military launched Operation Zarb-e-Azb in North Waziristan after peace talks between the government and the Taliban failed earlier this year. The Army says it has killed more than 1,100 militants and lost around 100 soldiers since the start of the operation in June.
More than 150,000 people have fled Khyber since a second military operation was launched there in October, targeting Taliban who had fled the assault on North Waziristan.