ISLAMABAD: Pakistani troops stormed into the main town in the Swat valley and fought street battles yesterday in a bid to wrest the capital of the northwest district from Taleban control, the military said.
Chief military spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas said parts of Mingora had already been cleared and 17 militants, including an important commander, were killed during the most recent fighting of Pakistan’s northwest offensive.
The ground assault on Mingora, a city with an estimated population of around 300,000 — most of whom have fled — marks the most crucial phase of the military’s blistering offensive against the Taleban in the scenic valley.
Although the military has bases inside Mingora, the town has been under effective Taleban control. As the administrative and business hub of the district, its capture is essential for the army to declare victory in Swat.
Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani yesterday said attacks by US drones on Pakistani territory were “counterproductive” because they undermined Islamabad’s efforts to isolate militants.
“As far as drone attacks are concerned, the entire world has the same stand as Pakistan has that drone attacks are counter-productive,” Gilani told reporters in a televised press conference in the eastern city of Lahore. “If the drone attacks had been useful, then we would have ourselves supported them.”
— With input from agencies
