In one of the deadliest encounters, nine Pakistani soldiers including two officers were killed in fierce fighting in Orakzai tribal agency in the country's northwest which also left 37 terrorists dead.
The fighting was triggered when hundreds of heavily armed Taliban fighters stormed a check post at Mashti Mela in Orakzai Agency raking it with heavy fire from all sides killing nine security personnels and wounding five more.
Military officials described the battle near Daburi as the most fierce and in the sharp exchanges which lasted for more than two hours, Paramilitary Frontier Corps killed 37 militants and injured forty five, official sources said.
More than 8,000 Pakistani forces are currently undertaking a combing operation in the Orakzai and nearby Bajaur tribal region, where large number of Taliban militants are suspected to be have taken shelter to hide from the Army's ongoing offensive in the Waziristan region.
Orakzai is the stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud, who recently re-surfaced in video campaigns after US and Pakistani intelligence had announced his killing in a drone attack in January.
In the operations in progress for the past few months, Pakistani forces have claimed to have killed at least 600 militants. Troops have also razed over 65 militant bases, including 13 training centres.
The figures cannot be independently confirmed as journalists have virtually no access to the conflict zone.
