The Pakistani security forces Wednesday killed 27 militants and destroyed eight vehicles in the Buner district in northwest Pakistan, according to local TV reports.
The media office of the security forces said that the operation was carried out in Pir BaBa, Sultandas and Ziyarat areas of Buner in the North West Frontier Province.
Meanwhile, the security forces entered Mingora, the main city in the Swat valley, early Wednesday morning to expel hundreds of Taliban, who Tuesday occupied the main buildings, government offices and major roads.
Reports quoted witnesses in Mingora as saying that they were heard heavy firing in the city. They said that the army used heavy artillery to shell emerald mines at the Fizaghat area, a kilometer from Mingora, killing 35 militants.
Thousands fled for safe places as Pakistani security forces and Taliban-linked militants Wednesday fought gunbattle in the restive Swat valley.
Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), who arrived in Mardan, a main city in North West Frontier Province (NWFP), from the Swat valley are facing problems to get shelter and food, according to local press reports.
NWFP Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said that he expects hostilities in Swat will displace around 500,000 people. He said that camps had been set up for the IDPs.
There has been no report of casualties as journalists are not allowed to visit the war-shattered area.
The authorities have imposed curfew for an indefinite period in Swat and Malakand areas, forcing the people to confine to their homes.
Witnesses said that people wanted to flee but the curfew had forced them to stay indoors.
(Xinhua News Agency May 6, 2009)
