MINGORA, Pakistan, Saturday (Reuters) A suicide car-bomber blew himself up at a Pakistani security post in the Swat valley on Saturday killing three soldiers in the most serious attack in the area for weeks.
The military went on the offensive in the region northwest of the capital in late April and has killed or driven out many Taliban militants in what has been widely seen as a successful operation.
The army push has allayed fears among allies, in particular the United States and other countries with troops in neighbouring Afghanistan, that nuclear-armed Pakistan was failing to get to grips with spreading Islamist violence.
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| A Pakistani soldier and a local run towards dead bodies of militants killed by security forces in Kabal of Pakistan's troubled Swat Valley on Tuesday Aug. 11, 2009. |
The bomb attack in Khawazakhela town, about 14 km (9 miles) north of Swat's main town of Mingora, will raise concern that the Taliban could make a comeback, especially as no top insurgent leaders in the former tourist valley were killed or captured.
“The bomber rammed his explosive-laden vehicle into the post, killing three soldiers and wounding four,” said a senior military official in the region who declined to be identified.The attack came a day after hundreds of people, including many women, attended a music and dance show to celebrate Independence Day in the valley, where the Taliban had banned music and girls' education.
Pakistan's efforts to suppress militants on its side of the border are vital for a U.S.-led bid to stabilise Afghanistan, where Taliban have threatened to disrupt an Aug. 20 presidential election.
The offensive in Swat, 120 km (80 miles) from Islamabad, forced nearly 2 million people from their homes but many have been returning in recent weeks since the army said most militants had been cleared from the valley.
The military said it killed more than 1,800 Taliban in the offensive, but there has been no independent verification of that estimate. The Taliban denied suffering such heavy casualties and have vowed to fight in.
In late July, the Taliban issued a recorded message from their leader in Swat, Fazlullah, who said his struggle would continue until Islamic sharia was enforced in the valley.
Although Swat is not on the Afghan border, there were fears it was turning into a bastion for Islamist fighters intent on bringing down governments in Pakistan, Afghanistan and beyond.
The military has also been attacking Taliban in several regions on the Afghan border including South Waziristan, a known haven for Taliban and al Qaeda.
In a major blow to the militants, Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of Pakistani Taliban and an al Qaeda cohort, was believed to have been killed in a missile strike by a CIA-operated drone in South Waziristan last week.
Pakistani and U.S. officials are almost certain that Mehsud, blamed for a wave of bomb attacks across Pakistan, including one that killed former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in 2007, has been killed though his aides insist he is alive.
Military aircraft attacked Mehsud's fighters in South Waziristan again on Saturday, intelligence officials in the region said. There was no immediate word on casualties. |
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