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Pakistan militant raid 'kills 50' | |
(about 9 hours later) | |
Pakistani helicopter gunships have attacked Islamist militants in the Khyber region, killing more than 50 fighters, local officials say. | |
A large ammunition depot was also destroyed, they said. The casualty claim cannot be independently verified. | |
Militants in the region have been stepping up attacks on supplies to the US and Nato in Afghanistan. | |
Earlier on Friday, a suicide car bomber killed himself and wounded six people at a checkpoint on the Khyber Pass. | |
Khyber official Tariq Hayat told Reuters news agency that the gunships attacked militants on the border of the Khyber and Orakzai regions. | |
"Fifty-two militants were killed and a huge ammunition depot and eight vehicles were destroyed in an attack by army helicopters," Mr Hayat said. | |
"Most of the deaths occurred because the destruction of the ammunition depot triggered a series of explosions," he said. | |
Bridge attack | |
In the suicide attack, the bomber targeted the checkpoint in Jamrud town in the Khyber tribal district. | |
"Six people, including two tribal policemen, were injured," news agency AFP quoted Bakhtiar Mohmand, a tribal administration official, as saying. | |
The explosion damaged other vehicles nearby and traffic was briefly halted following the attack, he said. | The explosion damaged other vehicles nearby and traffic was briefly halted following the attack, he said. |
On Tuesday, militants blew up a bridge in Khyber district, cutting the link to Nato forces and halting all the traffic on the road. | |
On Wednesday, suspected Taleban militants in Pakistan also destroyed a number of lorries in Landikotal, the main town in the Khyber region. | On Wednesday, suspected Taleban militants in Pakistan also destroyed a number of lorries in Landikotal, the main town in the Khyber region. |
Most supplies for the international forces in Afghanistan come through the Khyber Pass in Pakistan. | |
The US army has been setting up other supply routes to counter the increasing attacks on the road. | |
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