Five bodies were discovered in the Pandiali district of the Mohmand tribal region early on Monday. The bodies were discovered in the Uthmanzai area of the district where a recent surprise attack on the security forces left six soldiers dead, according to the official sources.
All of the deceased appeared to have been shot dead, however, this could not be independently verified, official sources added. The area is under curfew and the bodies could not be identified as a result. Recently there has been an increase in attacks in the Bajaur and Mohmand tribal areas as the factions of the banned militant outfit Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in these areas have declared war on the Pakistani government.
TTP spokesman Shahidullah Shahid on Sunday claimed that the outfit had captured important posts in the Bajaur tribal area and made advances in the area along the strategic Kaga Pass. On the other hand, the security forces also intensified their activities in the Mohmand and Bajaur tribal regions to counter the attacks by militants. -dawn