The Pakistani military has defeated the Taliban insurgents in a strategically important region on the Afghan border, a commander says. Major-General Tariq Khan, who is commanding military operations in Bajaur agency, said Saturday his forces had largely restored "a reasonable state of stability," a Press TV correspondent reported.
Bajaur is considered a crucial hub for the Taliban insurgents due to its access routes to neighboring Afghanistan and the rest of Pakistan. "They have lost. They have lost their cohesion here," Khan said. "The resistance has collapsed."
The Pakistani general added that the bulk of troops would remain in the region until the peace is fully restored. There was no independent verification of the military victory.
The military began its operation in Bajaur last August and has used it as proof of its commitment to tackle the Taliban in the restive north-west bordering Afghanistan. The Bajaur Agency has been the scene of some of the worst fighting between Pakistani forces and Taliban-linked militants in recent months.
The tribal regions along the shared border between Pakistan and Afghanistan have become a safe haven for al-Qaeda and Taliban militants after a US-led invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001.