From the Far Eastern Economic Review
The Pakistan military is said to have suffered far heavier casualties than it has admitted to during a major push in March against Al Qaeda militants in the tribal border region of South Waziristan. Senior government officials and local tribesmen say that 150 soldiers were killed in the fighting, though the official death toll has been put at 46. They add that the high number of casualties has caused considerable embarrassment for the military and angered officers in the field, who were not given sufficient intelligence about the militants. The high number of fatalities among the paramilitary Frontier Corps and the regular army during the 12-day operation against foreign and local militants linked to Al Qaeda has also triggered a storm of protest from Islamic parties, who dominate two provincial governments along the border with Afghanistan. |