Islamabad, July 17: Two soldiers were killed in a roadside bombing and two Islamist militants died in a raid on their bunkers in Pakistan’s north-western districts of Swat and Dir, the army said Friday.
Thousand of military and paramilitary troops launched an operation in the districts two months ago to expel the local Taliban, who backed out of a purported deal with the government to implement Islamic law and moved dangerously close to the capital, Islamabad.
After a bloody campaign resulting in the death of more than 1,700 militants and more than 160 soldiers, according to the government, the army last week announced the clearing of a major town, paving the way for the return of more than 1.9 million people displaced by the fighting.
In violence since Thursday, the army lost two soldiers in a roadside bombing in Swat, a scenic valley located 140 kilometres north-west of Islamabad.
The bombing took place near Serai, the army said.
A pro-government tribal militia in the Dir district destroyed Taliban bunkers in Shahdas near the Lal Qila area, killing two militants and injuring two others.
According to the military statement, the army also arrested 18 suspected militants from various areas of the two districts.
The Taliban have lost strongholds in the north-west but frequently attack the military, which is conducting search operations in the areas captured from the militants in Swat and three neighbouring districts.
—-Agencies