Clashes in Northwest Pakistan leave 10 dead

Fierce clashes between Pakistani security forces and Islamic militants on Tuesday left 10 people dead in northwest Pakistan close to the Afghan border, officials said. Dozens of armed insurgents attacked check posts in Khyber tribal region with eight militants and two soldiers killed in the ensuing gunfight. "The attack took place on posts near Bara river. Forces successfully repulsed the attack after heavy fighting," a security official told AFP. "Eight militants were killed during the exchange of fire. Two soldiers also got martyred while four others have sustained injuries," he said. The official said the area was under the control of government forces and stable after the attack. Pakistan has suffered heavy losses in attacks by Al-Qaeda and Taliban-led militants following the siege of a mosque in Islamabad by government forces in 2007. The government says more than 40,000 people have been killed in attacks and bombings carried out by the militants. On Monday, dozens of heavily armed Taliban fighters freed nearly 250 prisoners, including hardcore militants, during a sophisticated overnight attack on a jail in northwest Pakistan that killed 13 people.