Pakistani officials say at least 30 militants, including their “important commanders,” have been killed in the country’s North Waziristan in recent airstrikes carried out by the Pakistani military.
Pakistani security and intelligence officials on Monday said that the airstrikes targeted the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan’s tribal district late Sunday.
Militant sources also said the strikes in the tribal district targeted Hafiz Gul Bahadur and his ally Sadiq Noor, two leaders of local militant groups with ties to the Haqqani network.
“At least 30 militants have been killed. Dozens of fighters and commanders were gathered for a joint meeting of both the groups,” the militant sources said.
It is unknown if the two named leaders were killed in the airstrikes.
Another militant source said that seven key commanders of the two militant leaders were killed in the airstrikes, without making clear whether Gul Bahadur and Noor were among them.
The Pakistani military launched an offensive against pro-Taliban and al-Qaeda-linked militants back in June, but the spillover of the militancy from neighboring Afghanistan has so far hampered the efforts.
The army claims it has killed more than 1,600 militants so far.
Since 2004, Pakistan has been fighting against extremist groups in the northwest and its semi-autonomous tribal belt after its army entered the tribal region to capture al-Qaeda militants infiltrating from Afghanistan.
Thousands of Pakistanis have lost their lives in bombings and other militant attacks since 2001, when Islamabad entered an alliance with Washington in the so-called war on terror.
