Pakistani troops and gunship helicopters fired on al Qaeda-linked militants in the western tribal region on Monday, a day after fierce fighting killed up to 10 people in the area, officials and residents said. Residents said the latest clashes, which also involved army artillery fire, were only sporadic in the rugged South Waziristan tribal region near the Afghan border, where US military officials said Osama bin Laden and close associates may had been hiding.
"We have reports of two tribesmen killed in bombardment by the army this afternoon," said a resident of Laddha, where security forces and militants had been pounding each others' positions since Saturday night.
"The army has moved in to the main bazaar of Makeen," said the resident, who wished not to be named.
Makeen is a market town with hundreds of shops lining its streets in Laddha, 50 km (30 miles) North of South Waziristan's main town of Wana, itself located about 400 km (250 miles) Southwest of the capital, Islamabad.