Pakistani Troops Secure Town In Taliban-Held Valley

Armed Taliban fighters patrolling the streets in Buner district last week

BUNER, Pakistan (Reuters) -- Pakistani troops took the main town in a key northwestern valley after being dropped by helicopters behind Taliban lines, a military spokesman said on the second day of an offensive.

The spokesman said troops had secured the town of Daggar in Buner Valley and linked up with police and officers from the Frontier Constabulary militia.

The Taliban's entry into a region just 100 kilometers northwest of Islamabad earlier this month had sent shivers through Pakistan and sparked alarm in the United States.