Pakistan presses its assault
The offensive is seen as a key test. In Islamabad, gunmen tried to kill a high-ranking army officer.
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Pakistan pressed an offensive deeper into Taliban territory along the Afghan border yesterday, claiming to have killed 42 militants in the latest stage of an assault seen as crucial in defeating extremism in the nuclear-armed country.
The assault into South Waziristan's unforgiving mountains has triggered a bloody backlash from militants, who are determined to bring the war out of the remote, northwestern region and into the country's cities in hopes of eroding public and political support.
In the capital Islamabad, gunmen attacked a high-ranking Pakistani army officer in the second targeted shooting against military brass in less than a week. The army officer, and his mother who was traveling with him, escaped unhurt.
The fight in South Waziristan is seen as a major test of Pakistan's will and ability to tackle the northwestern strongholds of al-Qaeda-allied extremists. The army already has been beaten back from the region three times since 2004.
Pakistan has been criticized in the past for not cracking down on Islamist extremist groups it once nurtured as proxies to fight in India and Afghanistan. It remains unclear whether the army has committed enough troops to the current campaign to hold the territory it is seizing.
An army statement said troops were progressing well on three fronts in South Waziristan but met resistance.
It said that over the last 24 hours, 42 militants and one soldier had been killed. Since the assault began, the army claims to have killed 231 insurgents and lost 29 soldiers. It has given no figures for civilian casualties, but those fleeing have said they have also occurred.
Independent verification of army reports in the region is all but impossible because the military has blocked access for journalists and humanitarian workers.
Yesterday in Islamabad, gunmen attacked an army brigadier, equivalent to a brigadier general in the U.S. Army, as he was driving to a bank in a residential area. Muhammad Imran, who runs a business nearby, said he saw a young man take out a weapon from beneath his shawl and unleash a hail of bullets as the car slowed down for a speed bump.
"He was firing relentlessly," Imran said. "He was targeting the front seat of the car."
Another young man on a motorcycle then appeared and the two sped away, Imran said.