23 suspected militants killed in Pakistan
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Islamabad: At least 23 suspected terrorist were killed in fresh air strikes on militant hideouts in the country's North Waziristan Agency, Pakistani military said Thursday.
In an aerial action, targeting militant hideouts in Zerom and Ismail Khel districts, the Pakistan Army killed at least 23 militants, the army's media wing ISPR announced.
The claims, however, could not be independently verified as journalists have limited access to the restive tribal agency, the Dawn reported.
Military operation Zarb-i-Azb was launched by the Pakistan Army June 15 following a militant attack on Karachi's international airport and failure of peace talks between the government and Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) negotiators.
Over a million people have fled the offensive in North Waziristan, launched to wipe out longstanding militant strongholds in the area, bordering Afghanistan.
In a separate development, Pakistan Thursday reiterated its call on neighbouring Afghanistan to eliminate "hideouts of the Pakistani militants on the Afghan side of the border".
Security officials insist that Pakistani Taliban leaders, who have fled the country as a result of ongoing military operations, now operate from the Afghan border regions.