Pakistan's army captured a militant stronghold near the Afghan border, the military said Saturday, a breakthrough in an offensive against the Taliban and al-Qaida that has sent nearly 200,000 civilians fleeing for safety.
Maj. Gen. Tariq Khan said government forces captured Loi Sam, a strategic town in the Bajur tribal region, earlier this week "and killed the militants who were hiding there."
Bajur is part of Pakistan's tribal belt that has become the refuge of Taliban and al-Qaida fighters waging an intensifying insurgency on both sides of the frontier.
Pakistan's army launched an offensive in Bajur in early August, saying the region had become a "mega-sanctuary" for militants who had set up a virtual mini-state.
Pakistan has to stay in these areas and really suppress the jihadis, and not just consider this a punative mission. If Pakistan pulls out soon, all their work will be undone.
If the Pakistanis finally realize this is a fight to the death, Pakistan will win.
