|
|
 |
 |
 |
| Thursday, 26 February 2004 |
 |
|
 |
World | |
| News Business Features Editorial Security Politics World Letters Sports Obituaries
|
Foreign suspects arrested in Pakistan army operation on Afghan border ISLAMABAD, Wednesday (AFP) Pakistani troops Tuesday arrested several foreign suspects in an operation launched to track down Al-Qaeda fighters hiding in rugged tribal terrain bordering Afghanistan, a military spokesman said. "There are up to 20 people arrested, and there are some foreigners among them," Major General Shaukat Sultan told AFP. "The operation is over and I would say there were no casualties," he said. An intelligence official told AFP that some family members of the foreigners, including women and children, have also been detained. A statement issued by the military later said troops recovered "weapons, ammunition and audio cassettes" during the search operation in the tribal South Waziristan region. "In addition certain documents, including passport, have also been recovered from the houses which confirm the presence of foreigners there," it said. Hundreds of Pakistani troops backed by helicopter gunships Tuesday launched an operation aimed at foreign militants, believed to be mainly Uzbeks as well as some Chechens, in semi-autonomous South Waziristan, some 300 kilometres (180 miles) southwest of Islamabad. Officials said the troops shelled a house in the town of Zeralitta which intelligence reports had suggested was used as hideout by an unspecified number of foreign terrorists. Troops then made arrests during a house-to-house search, they said. A local administration official said hundreds of army troops had cordoned off the mountainous region and dug trenches on nearby hilltops while helicopters dropped commandos from the army's Special Services Group in the operation. The Pakistani military said the operation was launched after the militants ignored a February 20 deadline to surrender and the government received a tip-off about their positions. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security
Produced by Lake House |
