Tariq Hayat, chief administrator for the Khyber tribal area, said that local tribal leaders have agreed in principle to conditions that include handing over 16 wanted men and respecting government authority in the region. A tribal council also is mediating between authorities and militant leader Mangal Bagh.

Elders have historically wielded significant influence in the tribal areas, which are considered safe havens for pro-Taliban and al-Qaeda militants.

Pakistan launched the paramilitary offensive on June 28 after militants began threatening Peshawar, the capital of North West Frontier Province, as well as a key road used to send supplies to U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan.

Hayat said the tribal elders would meet with officials today to hash out details. "Security forces will remain in the area" while negotiations proceed, Hayat said.

Muhammad Ali, an official in charge of a crisis management center set up by the government in Peshawar to monitor the offensive, said security forces had stopped demolishing militant centers. He said the round-the-clock curfew in the troubled Khyber town of Bara - a key focus of the operation - was being relaxed during daytime hours.

Shops in Bara were open yesterday, selling cloth, electronics and food. Paramilitary forces showed only a minor presence in the area.

The move to talk peace appeared more in line with the policies of the new Pakistani government than the paramilitary operation itself.