25 Militants Reportedly Killed In Pakistan

Officials Say 2 Paramilitaries Also Killed In Clash After Attack By 200 Fighters On Checkpost

(AP)  An attack on a Pakistani military checkpost by some 200 pro-Taliban militants triggered intense fighting that killed 25 insurgents and two paramilitary soldiers near the Afghan border, security officials said Thursday.

The fighting broke out Wednesday in Loi Sam village in the Bajur tribal region, said two army officers and an area intelligence official. All three spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to media.

The officials said they received reports from local authorities about the casualties. The local intelligence official said the militants used rockets and assault rifles in the attack.

A local resident, Haji Sakhi, said he heard gunshots Wednesday, and on Thursday saw some of the casualties - apparently militants.

"The fighting stopped after midnight, and today I saw several bodies in an open area of Loi Sam," he said.

The militant attack comes two days after a Taliban spokesman held a news conference in Bajur threatening suicide bombings and other attacks unless the government ended a military crackdown in another region of Pakistan's volatile northwest, Swat Valley.

Maulvi Umar, an aide of top Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud, threatened militants would target the government and senior officials.

Pakistan's tribal regions are considered havens for Taliban and al Qaeda-linked fighters, many of whom are involved in attacks across the border in neighboring Afghanistan.

Bajur is the same tribal region where Osama bin Laden's No. 2, Ayman al-Zawahri, is believed to have survived a missile strike by a CIA Predator drone in 2006.

[yongamerica]

"The militant attack comes two days after a Taliban spokesman held a news conference in Bajur threatening suicide bombings and other attacks unless the government ended a military crackdown in another region of Pakistan''s volatile northwest, Swat Valley."

And Pakistan''s reply will be to pull its military out of Swat Valley. Not because they are cowards and are afraid of the Taliban and al Qaeda threats, but because they support them.

[nextgenman]

Sounds suspiciously like the old body count days of Vietnam. Do all of these Republicans live in the long-gone past?

[checkthepast]

Sounds suspiciously like the old body count days of Vietnam. Do all of these Republicans live in the long-gone past?

Posted by nextGenMan

I didn''t notice anything about voter registration cards being found among the body count...

[petro49l]

25 Taliban and 2 Pakistani Soldiers killed-off in a staged battle by Bin Laden. How many more Taliban will be sacrificed? Osama refers to Taliban as rank peasants. They tend orchards and fields of cannabis and poppies. But, Bin Laden is tired of the usual crop. He has imported technical devices and sophisticated chemicals to produce the most exotic, scientifically-grown poppy in the world. This plant will be the base for deadly, potent tar heroin. Bin Laden hopes to make billions of dollars on the sale.

[rational_1]

And the after-life''s supply of virgins gets depleted yet again. Hey Jihadists you better die soon before the supply runs out!

[beehive21-2009]

25 out of a possible 200, how pathetic , 150 to 190 dead ,would''ve been acceptable.Why have they not burnt the Poppy Fields ?

[DDouville]

My observation: Pakistan is a very reluctant ally in the war on terror. Most of their people hate Americans, that''s the bottom line. Peace Out from Dan