Pakistani troops kill 24 militants in clashes

Mohmand, Pakistan: Pakistani troops killed at least 24 militants after several security checkposts were attacked in a northwestern tribal region on the Afghan border on Friday, paramilitary officials said.

About 150 militants staged simultaneous attacks using small and heavy weapons on five army checkposts in the Baizai area of the Mohmand tribal agency on the Afghan border, officials said.

"The militants attacked the checkposts at around 1:15 a.m. (2015 GMT) and 24 militants were killed in retaliatory attacks by our security forces," a Frontier Corps official said.

Three paramilitary troops were also killed and about a dozen wounded in clashes that continued for hours, the official said.
 
A militant spokesman confirmed the attacks but disputed the official death toll, saying only two of their fighters were killed and three wounded. He said militants killed about a dozen troops.

Pakistani troops have scored major gains against pro-Taliban militants in military offensives and operations since last year, but insurgents have proved resilient and continued attacks on security forces and civilians.

More than 2,000 people have been killed in suicide and bomb attacks across Pakistan since the army stormed a militant-run mosque in capital Islamabad in 2007.