[Iran Press TV Latest] Pakistan's military says its forces have killed 24 militants in the town of Makin, in South Waziristan, as militant attacks and shootings continue across the country. As a Pakistani army offensive enters its fourth week, a military statement said on Friday that intense ground and air attacks have pushed the militants away from some of their locations in South Waziristan.
"Today, security forces have entered Makin. A large part of the town has been cleared while clearance operation is continuing in the remaining part," the statement said.
A house belonging to Tehreek-e-Taliban chief, Baitullah Mehsud, who was killed in a US drone attack last August, had been razed, it said.
Pakistan has vowed to crush Tehreek-e-Taliban in South Waziristan, part of the border area with Afghanistan infested with pro-al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters.
"Intense engagements" are taking place by the military in the Makin area, and the terrorists are "fleeing leaving behind their weapons and ammunition," the statement said and added that 21 militants had been killed so far around Makin and three others in Sararogha.
Pakistan launched its air and ground offensive into the troubled northwest region of the country on October 17, with some 30,000 troops backed by fighter jets and helicopter gunships laying siege to Tehreek-e-Taliban hide-outs.
The military claims to have killed 446 militants so far since the operation began, while 42 troops have also lost their lives.