Violence hits as Pakistani politicians jockey

PAKISTAN: Government forces killed at least 44 militants in clashes in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday, and the stock exchange took drastic action to stop steady losses stemming from increased violence and political uncertainty.

Hopes for political stability in nuclear-armed Pakistan after Pervez Musharraf resigned as president last week were dashed when the ruling coalition, led by the party of slain former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, fell apart over a judicial dispute and replacing Musharraf.

The departure on Monday of the second biggest party, that of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, ended what analysts said was an unnatural alliance between the two old rival parties and set the scene for a battle over the presidency.

The wrangling has distracted the government’s attention from mounting militant violence, critics say, though the government says it is committed to the U.S.-led campaign against terrorism.

Military officials said on Wednesday that 44 militants were killed in two clashes near the Afghan border.

“We’ll strike their hideouts. We won’t show any kind of relaxation,” the government’s top Interior Ministry official, Rehman Malik, told reporters in Islamabad. Islamabad, Thursday, Reuters