Forty three militants killed in Khyber operation

A local tribal man seen in a house destroyed during a crackdown operation against militants in Khyber Agency.





Another 43 militants were killed in Bara tehsil of Khyber Agency.

According to military sources, 35 militants were killed on Saturday when helicopter gunships shelled bases of the outlawed Lashkar-i-Islam in Sandan area of Tirah valley and Gogrina village in Bazaar-Zakhakhel area. Paramilitary troops and artillery units also took part in the operation.

The helicopters also attacked a training centre of Lashkar-i-Islam in Tirah valley where, according to officials, its chief Mangal Bagh has taken refuge. Six militants were killed in a clash with security personnel in Qambarkhel area.

Militants attacked a military convoy in Sheen Qamar area. Troops returned fire and killed two of the attackers. Security forces demolished 15 houses in different areas of Bara owned by important Lashkar-i-Islam shura members.

Prominent among them are Haji Amal Gul, Haji Jan Gul, Amir Said Nawab, Amir Musa Khan, Maulana Buner, Jan Mast and Shah Faisal.

Hundreds of Bara residents defied curfew and moved to safe places. Some of them said that they had to walk several kilometres to save their lives. ‘We are running out of food and other basic items.’

The Khyber administration announced a relaxation in curfew from 3pm to 6pm on Saturday. Officials said that they were trying to set up relief camps for the displaced people.

‘A total of 43 militants were killed during the operation in Khyber,’ said a Frontier Corps statement.

Troops have been fighting in the area after a suicide bomber blew himself up inside a border police post near Torkham on Aug 28, killing 22 policemen.

‘Today (Saturday) the security forces destroyed the hideouts and a training centre of the Lashkar-i-Islam in Tirah valley. Heavy casualties of militants are expected,’ said an earlier Frontier Corps statement.

On Thursday, troops destroyed the vacated house of Mangal Bagh, who had already escaped to the mountains, officials said.

Mangal Bagh has been accused by officials of running torture centres, private jails and a Taliban-style system in some parts of Khyber.

‘So far, 57 militants have been killed during six days of operations. Five security men have been wounded,’ Tariq Hayat, the top administrator of Khyber, told reporters on Saturday.

The operation would continue until militants were eliminated, he added. Militants frequently attack trucks along the Khyber Pass, a main route for supplies for US troops in Afghanistan.