Ten militants were killed in air strikes as ground troops took control of Kasha area of Orakzai Agency for the first time on Saturday.
Officials said that fighter jets pounded suspected positions of militants in Arghanjo, Sharla and Dagai areas of Upper Orakzai and destroyed three of their hideouts.
Troops moved from Shahukhel area of Hangu and took control of Kasha in Orakzai Agency. Troops had been fighting for months to gain control of the area.
Fighter jets had frequently been pounding suspected militant positions both in Upper and Lower Orakzai after reports emerged that some top leaders of Al Qaeda and Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan were hiding in the region.
In two days of operations, jets killed at least 23 militants and destroyed seven of their hideouts and three vehicles.
Meanwhile, troops continued sporadic artillery fire from the central Kurram side and Ferozkhel area on suspected militant positions in the bordering Khyber Agency in order to stop the movement of militants to settled areas.
Security forces have set up 18 checkposts inside the Orakzai Agency.
Officials told Dawn that security forces mulling over launching an operation in Orakzai and had surveyed difficult terrain and gathered information for the purpose.
Bodies of five militants belonging to Mullah Toofan group were brought to Orakzai Agency and buried in Aa Khel, Mamozai and Ali Khel areas. They were killed in a fight with a rival faction led by commander Rafique in central Kurram.
No comments:
Post a Comment