| GEO Pakistan | | 48 Taliban killed, 5 security personnel martyred in Swat clashes | Updated at: 2032 PST, Wednesday, July 30, 2008
 SWAT: More than 48 Taliban militants including 10 commanders have been killed in a fierce clash in the troubled Swat valley in the northwest, while 5 personnel of security forces were martyred, according to military sources.
The fighting took place overnight in a village near Matta, a known stronghold of militants in the region.
"We have inflicted heavy losses on the militants. We have video footage showing bodies of the militants killed in the fighting," a military spokesman said.
"Five of our brave soldiers have been martyred," he added. He said a curfew had been imposed across the Swat Valley until further notice.
Muslim Khan, Taliban spokesman confirmed the death of a top Taliban commander Maulvi Hussain Ali alias Toor Mulla, he, however, denied reports that many Taliban militants were killed. Separately, militants shot and killed an Afghan woman accused of being a U.S. spy in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal region on the Afghan border.
Pakistani authorities signed a peace pact with the militants in Swat in May, bringing a lull in months of violence, but militants have stepped up activity in recent weeks after accusing the government of failing to honour the accord. |  |
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