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Pakistan Says Air Strikes Kill 48 Militants In Tribal Regions


Pakistan's military says it has killed 48 suspected militants in air strikes in two tribal regions near the border with Afghanistan.

The military said army helicopters attacked militant hideouts on August 19.

It said five hideouts were destroyed in the Khyber region and seven were eliminated in North Waziristan.

The air strikes came on the same day that a roadside bomb in the nearby Bajaur tribal region exploded near a passing school van, killing three female teachers, two infant children, and a passerby.

Reports say the van was carrying the women and children to a local community school run by an aid group that is funded by international charities.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but Taliban militants have target educational institutions often in the region.

The Bajaur tribal region has been the scene of several military offensives against the Pakistani Taliban and foreign militants in recent years.

Pakistan’s Army has been carrying out an offensive against militants in North Waziristan since late May when it launched operations aimed at eliminating local and foreign fighters accused of orchestrating attacks in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The military says it has killed about 600 militants in the North Waziristan operation, with more than two dozen government soldiers killed.

More than 800,000 residents of North Waziristan have fled their homes since May, 2014.

Based on reporting by AP, AFP, and dpa

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