KHAR, Pakistan — Pakistan security forces battled militants close to the Afghan border Friday in fighting that has killed 44 suspected insurgents over the last three days, a government official said.
There was no independent confirmation of the fighting or the identities of the dead in Bajur, a tribal region where al-Qaida and Taliban have long had a presence. The Pakistan army launched a major operation in Bajur against the militants in 2008 that it claimed had cleared the area of militants, but clashes have continued since then.
Abdul Kabir, the top-ranking official in Bajur, said several troops had been injured in the fighting in the Slarzai area. He said the clashes began Wednesday when troops began helping a council of tribal elders in evicting Taliban from the area.
He said 21 militants were killed Friday, following 23 killed in the two preceding days.
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