A web of mines created by Islamist militants has slowed down the military's efforts to retake a key town from Taliban insurgents, officials said Thursday. It was the first act of resistance that troops have encountered since they began an offensive to eliminate the militants who are allegedly hiding in the north-western tribal region, a military official told dpa.
"It is like a spider web," the official said. "There are mines all over the region." Ground troops backed by helicopter gunships and artillery began their advance Monday to regain control of the town of Miranshah in the North Waziristan tribal district near the border with Afghanistan.
The area is known to be a stronghold of Pakistani and foreign militants linked to al Qaeda. The major ground offensive came after two weeks of airstrikes by fighter jets and the evacuation of nearly half a million civilians since the operation was launched on June 15.
Another official said troops were moving ahead slowly, using explosive detectors and sniffer dogs to defuse the mines, which are a weapon of choice for the Taliban in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ordered the military to eliminate the terrorists hiding in their so-called safe havens after efforts to engage the Taliban in a peace process didn't yield results. The military said nearly 400 fighters have been killed in almost three weeks of the campaign. That figure could not be independently verified because the area is inaccessible.
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