Pakistani paramilitaries wage war on militants

PAKISTANI paramilitary forces destroyed a handful of militant centres and uncovered alleged torture cells as they pressed ahead yesterday with an offensive against extremists near the Afghan border, officials said.

A spokesman for Pakistan’s top Taliban commander promised yesterday that militants would retaliate against the government, and were suspending efforts to reach and implement peace deals.

The operation in the Khyber tribal area is a shift for Pakistan’s new government, which has sought to reduce violence through the peace deals. But with extremists increasingly threatening Peshawar, a major north-western city, and ambushing supply convoys bound for US-led coalition troops in Afghanistan, the government turned to its troops.