19 Taliban militants, five soldiers killed in Pak

At least 14 Taliban militants were killed in twin US drone attacks in Pakistan's restive northwest on Wednesday while five soldiers and as many militants died in violence, including in a suicide bombing at an army barrack in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

US drones carried out two back-to-back strikes on a terrorist training compound in North Waziristan tribal region on Wednesday, killing at least 14 militants.

While the first strike at the militant training centre at Sunzali village, 30 km west of Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan killed six militants, the subsequent strike carried out as tribesmen were pulling out bodies from the debris killed eight militants, sources said.

Reports said two foreigners were among the dead.

Meanwhile, five soldiers and as many militants died in violent incidents in Pakistan on Wednesday even as troops conducted search and clearance operations against the Taliban in the Swat valley and Waziristan tribal region.

Four soldiers were killed and 10 more injured when a suicide bomber struck an army barracks at Tararkhal, over 90 km from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir capital Muzaffarabad this morning. Part of the barracks was destroyed by the blast.

This was the third suicide attack in PoK since June last year. Violence by pro-Taliban militants has spread to Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir in recent months. The region was largely unaffected by militant attacks over the years.

In another incident, a soldier was killed and two more were injured when Taliban militants fired several rockets at security forces at Tabai Sar in the Razmak sector of Waziristan, the military said.

Five militants were killed and a soldier was injured in a shootout that erupted after rebels attacked security forces check posts in the troubled Mohmand tribal region this evening.

Militants attacked three check posts with rockets, mortars and small arms. The firing continued for some time.

Five militants were killed in retaliatory action by the troops.

Security forces also conducted a search and clearance operation at Sherkai near Razmak in Waziristan and cleared over 100 houses.

Search and clearance operations were also conducted at Badar valley in Shakai sector of Waziristan.

In the Swat valley, security forces apprehended two suspected militants and seized a cache of arms and ammunitions during search operations at several places.

Meanwhile, army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani chaired a Corps Commanders' Conference at the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi to review the security situation in and around Pakistan. The meeting was given a briefing on the security situation.