Islamabad: At least 15 militants were killed in restive North Waziristan tribal region in Pakistan on Saturday, an army statement said.
Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), the mouthpiece of Pakistani army, said that army aviation helicopters targeted three militants' hideouts in Ghulam Ali area of the region in northwest Pakistan, killing 12 militants and destroying the hideouts, Xinhua reported.
Four explosive-laden vehicles were also destroyed by the army helicopters, the statement added.
In another incident at Boya town, three militants and a soldier were killed in an armed clash during a clearance operation by the Pakistani army.
Mohammad Hasan, a senior commander who hailed from Kabul, was killed in Boya area, Dawn online quoted a Tehreek-i-Taliban spokesperson as saying in a statement, adding that he was recently released from an Afghan prison and had "reunited with his comrades" in Pakistan.
The Pakistan military launched Operation Zarb-e-Azb in North Waziristan Agency in June 2014 to root out terrorists.
An army statement said earlier this month that the operation claimed lives of over 1000 militants, while the military lost 82 soldiers in clashes.
