Peshawar, Sept.

Peshawar, Sep 28: Baitullah Mehsud, the head of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has once again fallen seriously ill, leading to convergence of the top leadership of the TTP at Makeen area of South Waziristan Agency.

The sources said Baitullah Mehsud, who is suffering from high level of diabetes, had once again suffered a serious attack, causing a lot of concerns among the TTP leaders.

“This time also he seems to have gone into coma,” The News quoted the sources, as saying.

Peshawar, Sep 28: At least 15 militants were killed and 22 others were injured in ongoing Pakistani security forces operation in Bajaur tribal agency.

Official sources said on Saturday that security forces targeted and destroyed hideouts of militants in Tangkhata, Delly, Kausar, Rashkai, Bicheenaand Banda areas using artillery, mortar and gunship helicopters.

They also recovered huge quantity of arms and ammunition from militants’ hideouts.

Meanwhile, security forces started advancement towards Lowesome stronghold of militants and further strengthened control over surrounding areas.

Peshawar, Sept 26 : Five civilians, including women and children, were killed and several others injured when Pakistan military launched air strikes at the fleeing tribal families, mistaking them for militants at Gang village in Salarzai Tehsil of Bajaur Agency, last evening.

Two gunship choppers started shelling the fleeing tribal families after militants fired missiles on Civil Colony in Khar where the political administration had convened a tribal Jirga, The News quoted tribal sources as saying.

They said that the missiles on the colony were fired from Baba picket in Khar Tehsil and the choppers started shelling on tribesmen who were fleeing their homes via a road in Gang area of the almost militant-free Salarzai Tehsil.

Peshawar, Sept 26 : In an attempt to save innocent civilians from being killed in a military action on the Taliban hideouts, a tribal Lashkar comprising more than 3000 armed volunteers set all the three main Taliban hideouts afire and chased the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants out of their area in Jamrud Tehsil of the Khyber Agency.

“Yes, we successfully purged the area of the militants. Had we not evicted them from the area, the military would have launched an operation which would have taken the lives of hundreds of innocent people, as is the case in other areas,” the paper quoted Haji Abdul Manan, the head of the Jirga, as saying.

Peshawar, Sept 24 : Highly placed sources in Pakistan have said that “foreign” Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters were ‘infiltrating’ into Bajaur from Afghanistan to join their colleagues in the crucial battle for survival in the face of an all-out military action, because it was beyond the local commandants’ capacity to face the Army action.

The foreign Taliban and Al Qaeda included Arabs, Chechens, Uzbeks and Afghans, who were being led by an Afghan commander Qari Ziaur Rehman.

Pakistan Army’s Major Murad Khan confirmed presence of foreign Taliban and Qaeda fighters, saying: “We have received information about militants crossing into Bajaur from across the border and they are mostly foreigners.”