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Khar, Pakistan (AFP) Sept 17, 2008 At least 19 Al-Qaeda linked militants were killed Wednesday when Pakistani fighter aircraft bombarded their hideouts in a tribal region near the Afghan border, a security official said. The casualties were in the rugged Bajaur region, where Pakistani troops launched a major offensive against Islamic militants last month. The operation has left more than 800 people dead, mostly militants, and also displaced 260,000, officials said. "Fighter jets bombarded militant hideouts Wednesday, killing 19 rebels and wounding 16 others," a security official told AFP. "Helicopter gunships also shelled bunkers dug up by militants in Rashakai, Zarmandi, Kossar and Banda areas," the official added. The casualty figure could not be independently verified. Pakistan's tribal regions have been wracked by violence since thousands of Taliban and Al-Qaeda rebels sneaked into the country after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001. US and Afghan officials have claimed that militants use the mountainous region to launch cross-border attacks on international troops based in Afghanistan. Violence linked to Pakistan's role in the "war on terror" has claimed the lives of more than 1,200 people in suicide and bomb attacks across the country in the past year. Related Links News From Across The Stans
![]() ![]() The top US commander in Afghanistan said Tuesday he needed more than 10,000 combat troops to fight the insurgency, in addition to those committed last week by US President George W. Bush. |
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