Security forces missed the militant hideout they were aiming for and killed 15 civilians in an artillery barrage that landed in a residential area in the restive tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, local media reported Wednesday. Separately, four people, including two policemen, were killed in two bomb incidents in NWFP.
The paramilitary troops fired artillery and mortars on suspected militant positions in Nawagai area of Bajaur tribal district late Tuesday after one of their colleagues was wounded by an improvised explosive device. Local residents said most of the shells fell in residential areas and caused serious damage to houses.
Those killed included two women and more than 80 were wounded, Aaj TV news reported. Fighting then erupted between security forces and tribal militant forces and continued on Wednesday afternoon. The death toll is feared to rise as some bodies were lying on the road near the main market in the area and the locals could not move them because of the ongoing firefight.
Separately, two policemen were killed while diffusing a roadside bomb in Swat district of NWFP, which has been a scene of intense fighting between security forces and followers of pro-Taliban cleric Fazlullah since late last year, said the district police chief Waqif Khan. Two suspected militants died in the same district when a bomb they were making went off prematurely. The explosion destroyed the house they were in.