Pro-Taliban militants say they released 60 Pakistani soldiers

Nov 9, 2007, 13:17 GMT

Islamabad - Pro-Taliban militants said Friday they had released 60 paramilitary troops that had surrendered to them hours ago in Pakistan's volatile north-western valley of Swat.

The soldiers from the Frontier Corps came under siege at a checkpoint in the Daroosh area by dozens of heavily armed rebels on Thursday evening and agreed to give themselves up following hours of negotiations on condition that they would not be harmed.

'We released them after holding them in custody for some hours,' the militants' spokesman, Maulana Sirajuddin, said.

The security personnel were also given 1000 rupees (16 dollars) each before the release.

More than 200 security personnel have surrendered to the Islamic militants since October 26, when bloody clashes erupted between government forces and supporters of the radical cleric Maulana Fazlullah in Swat.

The week-long battle left around 200 people dead in the scenic valley some 160 kilometres from the North-West Frontier Province capital Peshawar

But the major part of the valley remained under the control of Fazlullah, who is demanding the enforcement of Taliban-style rule in the area.

The firebrand cleric is believed to be aided by several dozen al- Qaeda militants, who fled to the area after US-led forces invaded Afghanistan in 2001.