Pakistan’s military says fresh fighting in a volatile northwestern border region has left at least 34 militants and three soldiers dead.
Fighter planes bombed suspected hideouts Sunday morning in the Dattakhel area of North Waziristan Agency, a semi-autonomous tribal territory near the Afghan border. The army's media wing says at least 27 militants, including "important commanders and foreigners" were killed in the action.
The airstrikes followed overnight clashes in Dattakhel that left three soldiers and seven militants dead. Officials said four personnel were also wounded in the exchange of fire.
On Friday, the army reported airstrikes killing at least 30 fighters in the area adjacent to the Afghan border.
The military launched the Waziristan offensive, called Zarb-e-Azb, in June and says it has so far cleared “90 percent territory” of suspected terrorists. The operation area was later extended to nearby Khyber Agency, another tribal district on the Afghan border, to kill or capture militants fleeing from North Waziristan.