Pakistani forces attack militants near Afghan border (Roundup)

Aug 7, 2007, 13:23 GMT

Islamabad - Pakistani forces attacked suspected hide-outs of pro-Taliban militants near the border with Afghanistan Tuesday, while President Pervez Musharraf warded off proposals of unilateral US military action against terrorists in the tribal region.

In the first major military assault in North Waziristan since a fragile peace deal fell apart last month, artillery and helicopter gunships struck compounds near the village of Daygan, located about 20 kilometres from the region's main town of Miranshah.

The absence of ground troops in the operation prevented an immediate assessment of casualties, army spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad said.

But Pakistan's Aaj television cited local officials as saying four children were injured and several houses destroyed in the bombardment, which Arshad said followed good intelligence.

'We had reports that the two compounds were being used by the militants to launch attacks on army convoys,' the official said.

Meanwhile, the Geo news channel reported that militants killed one soldier during an attack on an army checkpoint near Miranshah.

Pro-Taliban tribal leaders in North Waziristan pulled out of a ceasefire agreement with the Pakistani government after the military assault in July on Islamabad's radical Red Mosque. More than 300 people have since died in retaliatory attacks by militants in the border region.

Tuesday's strikes came amid growing US pressure on Islamabad to stamp out militant and terrorist bases in North Waziristan, which is believed to serve as a staging area for raids against Western and government forces in Afghanistan.

Specifically, the US military intelligence says that Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network has regrouped here, stoking calls for unilateral US action.

During a meeting with US Senator Richard Durbin in the southern port city of Karachi, Musharraf stressed that only Pakistani forces would undertake military operations inside Pakistani territory.

Recent statements in the US on launching attacks were 'counter- productive to the close cooperation and coordination between the two countries in combating the threat of terrorism,' Musharraf said, according to a Foreign Ministry statement.

US President George W Bush on Monday said he was confident that 'actionable intelligence' would enable the two countries to take out al-Qaeda leaders hiding in Pakistan.

But he did not specifically say whether he would first seek authorization from Musharraf for actions by US forces.

US officials previously refused to rule out strikes in Pakistan, which is a key US ally in the war against terrorism.

Last week, US Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama also said that if elected he would send in troops against al-Qaeda on Pakistani soil.

However, the Pakistani Foreign Ministry this week denied that there were any al-Qaeda or Taliban refuges in Pakistan.

In his talks with Durbin, Musharaf also expressed disappointment at the adoption by the US Congress of legislation linking assistance to Pakistan with its performance in the fight against terrorism.

The move was an 'irritant in the bilateral relationship, which must be based on trust and confidence in moving forward on issues of common interest,' the president said.