Pakistani officials say fighting has intensified between
government troops and Taliban militants in a northwestern region, further
straining a three-month old peace deal.
Officials say Pakistani soldiers killed seven militants, including a commander,
on Monday in the Buner district of North West Frontier Province. In the nearby
Swat Valley, the Taliban claimed responsibility for an ambush on an army convoy
that killed a soldier.
The casualties could not be independently confirmed.
Pakistani authorities imposed a curfew on Swat's main town of Mingora Monday,
accusing militants of violating the peace deal by attacking security forces and
resuming street patrols. But, the Pakistani military said it would honor the
peace deal by exercising restraint in Swat.
Under the deal, Pakistani authorities agreed to impose Islamic law in Swat and
other parts of the Malakand region in return for an end to insurgent violence.