Pakistani Forces Kill 36 Uzbek, German Militants

Islamabad, Jan 22, IRNA – Pakistani security forces have killed 33 Uzbek, three Germans militants and some senior Taliban commanders in the restive North Waziristan tribal region, it was announced Wednesday. The military sources added that most of the militants killed on the night of January 20/21 when the gunships pounded hideouts of the suspected militants. The sources also said that important Pakistani Taliban commanders Wali Mohammad, Asmat Shaheen Bitani, Noor Badshah and Maulvi Farhad were also killed in the bombing. Residents from the region said fighter jets were also used to target positions of the Taliban militants mostly in Mir Ali area of North Waziristan. The shelling started following the Sunday truck bomb attack on a convoy of the security forces in Bannu city killing 20 soldiers and injuring 30 others. A day later, a Taliban suicide bomber blew himself up near a checkpoint jointly manned by police and army close to the armyˈs headquarters in Rawalpindi, killing six soldiers and seven civilians./end