Fresh Jet Bombing killed 50 militants in North Wazirastan

Some media reports suggested that the number of militants killed could be over 100, although this could not be independently verified. - Photo File

PESHAWAR: Fighter jets struck nearly eight militant hideouts in North Waziristan tribal region early on #Sunday, killing at least 50 suspected foreign #militants, according to Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) sources.

ISPR sources added that the suspected mastermind of Karachi airport attack had been killed during then operation and a huge cache of arms and ammunition had been destroyed.

Strikes took place in the Boya tehsil, Degan forests and Datta Khel tehsil of North Waziristan.

The targets were the hideouts of foreign militants of Uzbek origin, sources said, adding that the hideouts of militants were completely destroyed in the strikes.

Most of those killed during the operation were Uzbek militants.

Some media reports suggested that the number of militants killed could be over 100, although this could not be independently verified.

On Wednesday night, two US drone strikes hit the region, killing at least 16 in the first such attack this year.

As pressure builds for a fuller response to the Karachi airport assault, which was joined by Uzbek militants, residents and officials in Miramshah told news agency AFP that the majority of foreign and local fighters had already left.

"Most of them have gone deep into the mountains towards the Afghan border,” a senior security official told AFP.

The locals said militant groups were also seen escaping from villages that are a known hub of the dreaded Haqqani network, a militant group known for its spectacular attacks against US forces in Afghanistan. Dawn