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Pakistan airstrikes

June 15, 2014

Pakistan's military has launched renewed airstrikes near the Afghan border, reportedly killing dozens of militants. Islamabad is under pressure to crack down on militants after last week's attack on Karachi airport.

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Pakistani F-162
Image: Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images

Pakistani fighter jets pounded eight militant hideouts in North Waziristan on Sunday, according to intelligence officials. The Pakistani news website Dawn.com reported that the airstrikes killed 50 militants, while the Associated Press put the death toll as high as 100.

The airstrikes reportedly targeted Uzbek militants allied with the Pakistani Taliban. Islamabad has warned foreign fighters to leave the region or face retaliation, after the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan claimed that it helped execute the bloody siege on Karachi airport. At least 36 people died in the gun and bomb attack against Pakistan's busiest airport last week.

"Uzbek fighters had gathered in the area, they were taking rest when jets hit them," an intelligence official told the AFP news agency.

Some reports claim that the mastermind of the Karachi airport attack, Abu Abdul Rehman al-Maani, was also killed in Sunday's airstrikes.

Last Tuesday, Pakistani military jets targeted nine hideouts in the Tirah Valley, killing 25 suspected militants. A day later, the US launched drone strikes inside Pakistan for the first time in six months, killing at least 13 suspected militants.

slk/kms (AP, AFP, dpa)