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MIRANSHAH: At least 19 militants were killed in two separate incidents of bombing and gunfight in North Waziristan Friday, local security officials said, the latest clashes in almost a week of infighting between rival Taliban factions.
A total of 62 people have been killed in the violence which erupted on Sunday between supporters of commander Khan Said Sajna and followers of the late Hakimullah Mehsud group in North Waziristan.
Both factions are part of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) umbrella group.
Six militants were killed when their vehicle was blown up with a remote control bomb in the Shawal area, 45 kilometres west of Miranshah.
In another separate incident in Shawal town, 10 insurgents were killed in clashes when members of the Sajna group came under rocket attack in their car, a local intelligence official told AFP.
Militant sources also confirmed the clash and casualties.
The feud began after Sajna, a senior commander, was rejected for the TTP leadership following the killing of then-leader Mehsud last November, militants say.
The TTP has long been riven by infighting.
Sajna had been seen as a strong candidate to become TTP chief following Mehsud's death.
But the movement's ruling council at the last minute elected Mullah Fazlullah, who hails from Swat and is believed to be hiding in Afghanistan.
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