Pakistani soldiers are closing in on the main town in the Taliban bastion of Swat, the army said yesterday.
The army launched the offensive more than a week ago to stop the spread of Taliban influence.
Earlier, a car packed with mortar bombs blew up in the city of Peshawar, killing 11 people. A suspected US drone aircraft fired missiles at militants in another region near the Afghan border, killing 12 of them, government officials said.
The offensive in the one-time tourist valley of Swat, northwest of Islamabad, has forced more than 900,000 people from their homes and the UN has warned of a humanitarian tragedy unless Pakistan gets massive help.
A military spokesman said clashes had erupted in different parts of Swat and 47 militants had been killed in the past 24 hours. That would take the toll in the offensive to about 970 militants and 48 soldiers, the military said.
Reporters have left Swat and there was no independent confirmation of the casualties. About 15,000 members of the security forces face about 5,000 militants, the military said.
“The security forces are closing in from different directions and have been able to inflict many more casualties,” military spokesman Major-General Athar Abbas told a briefing.
“Security forces are getting close to Mingora city. The aim is to isolate and block the movement of fleeing terrorists,” he said.
The Taliban hold Mingora, Swat’s main town, and many civilians are believed to still be there.
Most political parties and members of the public support the offensive, despite skepticism about an alliance with the US in its campaign against militancy.
But opposition will grow if many civilians are killed or if the displaced are seen to be enduring undue hardship.
Among the dead in the Peshawar blast were four children passing in a school bus, police said. Peshawar is the main city in northwestern Pakistan, to the southwest of Swat.
There was no claim of responsibility, but government officials have warned of the danger of militant retaliation for the Swat offensive.
The US drone aircraft fired missiles at militants in the North Waziristan ethnic Pashtun tribal region, on the Afghan border to the southwest of Peshawar.
Pakistani officials said 12 militants, including two Arabs, were killed.
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