Taliban ambush kills seven soldiers

Taliban militants armed with guns and rockets ambushed a military convoy Friday, killing seven soldiers in the militant stronghold of North Waziristan, officials said. The attack took place at Khar Qamar, 30 kilometres (18 miles) west of Miranshah, the main town in the district that has become the most notorious Taliban and al Qaeda stronghold on Pakistan's border with Afghanistan.
The security officials said nine militants were also killed in the attack, but there was no independent confirmation of the toll. "At least seven soldiers were martyred when militants fired machine guns and rockets on a military convoy," a senior security official told AFP. Other security officials in Peshawar confirmed the attack and that the toll had risen from four to seven. "After the ambush, military helicopters and troops retaliated and there were reports of deaths of nine militants," an intelligence official said.