Hundreds of families fled North Waziristan on Thursday fearing further attack a day after an army air and ground assault killed 45 militants suspected of links to Al Qaeda. The army action provoked retaliation by tribesmen in the area of North Waziristan. The tribesmen, urged on by militant Muslim clerics, took up arms and clashed with troops in the semi-autonomous regionn. Rocket and gunfire resounded through the night in Miranshah, the main town in the region, and the airstrip and military fort both came under fire as helicopters patrolled overhead. “We are leaving to save our children from being killed,” said Rahman Karay, a shopkeeper in Miranshah. He said helicopter gunships had strafed the area on Wednesday and again on Thursday.
Security officers said on Wednesday the helicopters had been used to disperse militant tribesmen. The tribesmen were enflamed by talk that villagers were among the casualties when helicopter gunships backed by ground troops smashed a militant den at Danda Saidgai, a village 15 km north of Miranshah. A military statement issued late Wednesday said 45 mostly foreign fighters along with tribal militants had been killed.