North Waziristan : Around 150 militants armed with rockets attacked a security checkpost in Pakistan's Waziristan on Thursday, killing eight soldiers, intelligence officials said, as tensions rise in the volatile northwestern region along the Afghan border.
The attack, in which about 12 militants were killed, appeared to be part of a new strategy by the Pakistani Taliban of staging large-scale assaults on military and government targets in a bid to demoralize the army.
It came on the heels of a flurry of missile strikes by U.S. drone aircraft in the tribal region along the Afghan border regarded as a hub of militants from around the world.
The United States appears to have stepped up its drone missile strikes against militants, especially after U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton visited Pakistan recently and urged Pakistan to do more to fight insurgents.
The similar type of attack has occured last week when unknown people from Afghanistan have attacked a Pakistani Check post for which no one has claimed responsibility.
"The militants were carrying rockets and heavy weapons and attacked the checkpost shortly after midnight," an intelligence official in Waziristan told Reuters, describing the latest attack. "Eight soldiers were killed and twelve were wounded."
Security forces hit back, killing at least 12 militants, another official said. It was not possible to verify the casualty figures. The attack took place on the border between North and South Waziristan.
Drone strikes are pounding areas of South Waziristan controlled by fighters loyal to militant leader Maulvi Nazir, who is loyal to the Pakistani state but strangely the don't target so called Pakistani Taliban who are anti Pakistan.
Rahimullah Yusufzai, an expert on militants, said the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), or Taliban Movement of Pakistan, is trying to both lure the army into bigger battles and draw other militants like Nazir's men into their insurgency.
"The TTP is launching attacks on security forces and army to provoke them to react. The army will have no other option to launch an offensive, even on a limited scale, if the death toll among security forces rises in Waziristan," he said.
