PESHAWAR, Pakistan: Pakistani military jets killed 30 militants near the Afghan border on Wednesday, an army statement said. The airstrikes in the Khyber tribal region’s Tirah Valley pounded several militant hide-outs, destroying two arms and ammunition depots as well, the army said.
It’s the latest in a days-long army offensive in the area, largely controlled by a militant group called Lashkar-e-Islam, or Army of Islam, which recently announced its support for the Pakistani Taleban.
The Pakistani Taleban and its allies operate on both sides of the porous border.
The army said its operation killed 80 militants over the weekend. Seven Pakistani soldiers also died.
Meanwhile, a suspected US missile strike in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province, on the border with Pakistan, killed at least nine militants with the Lashkar-e-Islam group on Tuesday, said two Pakistani intelligence officials who spoke on condition of anonymity as they weren’t authorized to discuss the strike. The cross-border intelligence was based on militant radio traffic and sources on the ground.
Pakistan has stepped up anti-militant efforts after the Taleban attacked a school in December in the northwestern city of Peshawar, killing 150 people — mostly children.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif told business leaders in the port city of Karachi on Wednesday that Islamabad was resolved in its fight against terrorism.
“We will not let them succeed,” he said.
Pakistan Army kills 30 militants



