Pakistan strikes kill 31 militants, drone kills 7

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistani airstrikes killed 31 militants and a suspected U.S. drone strike killed another seven, officials said Sunday, as local troops pressed a six-month offensive in tribal regions along the Afghan border that have long been insurgent havens. The airstrikes late Saturday in the Tirrah valley of the Khyber region destroyed four militant hideouts and a suicide bomber training center, said an army statement. The military said several would-be suicide bombers were among the dead, without providing further details.
The military says the operation in Khyber is aimed at militants who have fled a massive offensive in the neighboring North Waziristan region that was launched on June 15, 2014. The army says the offensive has resulted in the killing of 1,200 militants. Last month’s school massacre in Peshawar — in which 150 people were killed, mainly children — is believed to have been launched from Khyber. The attack prompted both Afghanistan and Pakistan to vow tougher action along the porous border.