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Pakistan arrests 28 militants in NATO supply route operation
Peshawar, Pakistan (AFP) Dec 31, 2008 Pakistani security forces arrested 28 rebels and killed three civilians as troops backed by helicopter gunships continued a major operation against militants for a second day on Wednesday, a senior official said. Supplies to NATO and US forces in Afghanistan via the historic Khyber Pass remained suspended because of the operation, local administration chief Tariq Hayat told a news conference. The offensive in the lawless Khyber tribal region near the Afghan border was launched at dawn on Tuesday after a series of attacks by suspected Taliban militants on foreign military supply depots in northwest Pakistan. Hundreds of NATO and US-led coalition vehicles were destroyed in the militant raids in December. "The operation will continue until the militants are flushed out and the supply route is secured," Hayat said. A total of 28 suspected militants have been arrested and 19 houses belonging to those harbouring Taliban militants have been demolished, he said. Three civilians were killed Wednesday when their home was hit by "mistake", he said adding that the government had decided to give cash compensation to their families. Five people were killed in the operation on Tuesday, officials said. Hayat said 116 Afghans living in Shakas town had been rounded up and put into Jamrud jail. He gave no details. A curfew remained in force in Jamrud town, the gateway to the Khyber Pass, and traffic was suspended on the highway linking Peshawar to the border town of Torkham, he said. Educational institutions in the region will remain shut "until the objective of the operation is achieved," he said. The bulk of the supplies and equipment required by NATO and US-led forces battling the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan is shipped to Pakistan's largest port, Karachi, in the south. From there, the containers of food, fuel, vehicles and munitions are taken by truck to depots outside Peshawar before being transported to Afghanistan via the Khyber Pass. But the fabled road passes through the heart of Pakistan's lawless tribal zone, where extremists sought refuge after Afghanistan's hardline Taliban regime was ousted in a US-led invasion at the end of 2001. Two weeks ago, several haulage companies in Pakistan working for foreign forces refused to ply the 50-kilometre (30-mile) route between Peshawar and Torkham, saying their drivers' lives were at risk. Related Links News From Across The Stans
Pakistan closes NATO supply route to fight militants
Peshawar, Pakistan (AFP) Dec 30, 2008Pakistan on Tuesday cut off supplies to NATO and US forces in Afghanistan via the Khyber Pass as security forces launched a major operation against militants there, officials said. |
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