Dozens killed in three days of clashes between Pakistan army and foreign militants near Afghanistan

Thursday, June 10th 2004, 6:07 am

By: News On 6

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) _ Pakistani troops pounded suspected al-Qaida hideouts and a training facility with artillery, mortar and small arms fire Friday in a third day of violence in a lawless tribal region near the Afghan border.

The army said it had killed 35 insurgents. Fifteen security forces were killed in an attack on a checkpoint on the first day of the fighting Wednesday, army spokesman Gen. Shaukat Sultan said.

He said the army had retrieved the soldiers' bodies, many of which had been mutilated.

Sultan said the three-day army offensive focused on three al-Qaida-linked compounds _ a training facility, a safe house, and the home of an alleged terror financier _ near the town of Shakai, about 15 miles west of Wana, the largest town in South Waziristan.

``Pakistan took a bold decision to fight against terrorism,'' Sultan said. ``We are ready to pay the price, whatever it may be, and we will take this fight against terrorism to its logical end.''

Residents say a number of civilians have been killed, with mud homes leveled and many people forced to flee, but Sultan said he had no information about any civilian casualties.

Sultan said one of the targets was the home of a suspected al-Qaida financier, Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi. He would not comment on whether the suspect was there when the attack occurred but said 10-15 other foreigners were believed inside. Their fate was unclear.

Sultan showed photos of the bodies of five militants killed by the army and displayed satellite images he said showed the militant compounds.

He would not confirm whether the photos were taken by U.S. satellites, but acknowledged that Pakistan receives technical help from Washington.

The army said the foreign militants had taken the local population hostage, forcing the army to flush them out.

``Today, we appropriately responded to the latest unprovoked attacks by the terrorists,'' Sultan said.

Government and military officials said the army was pounding the hideouts with artillery, mortars and other weapons, and helicopters also were seen in the area.

Residents in Wana told The Associated Press by phone that they saw fighter planes and heard a ``loud explosion,'' suggesting the military might have dropped bombs on the hideouts, but Sultan refused to confirm the use of aircraft.

``We cannot give such operational details at this stage,'' he said, adding that the army was using all means necessary to crush the militants.

Sultan said he had no figures on casualties suffered by either side Friday. A resident, Nawab Khan, said many people had been killed on the outskirts of Wana. There was no way to independently verify the claim because of the area's remoteness.

The military has barred journalists from going to the target area.

Pakistan's tribal regions bordering Afghanistan are considered a possible hideout for Osama bin Laden and his chief aide, Ayman al-Zawahri. There was no immediate indication that top al-Qaida figures were among those involved in the fighting.

Tension has been building in South Waziristan in the past month as authorities pressured tribesmen to evict hundreds of Central Asian, Arab and Afghan militants, many of whom moved there from Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban regime in late 2001.

The militants have refused to surrender and register with authorities despite a government amnesty offer that would allow them to settle in Pakistan if they renounced terrorism.

The army said it would grant amnesty to any locals it deemed ``facilitators'' of the foreign fighters if they agreed to surrender.

However, it condemned tribal strongmen who had been granted an amnesty in April in return for turning over all foreigners. No militants were handed over, despite the withdrawal of many Pakistani troops from the combat area.