Taliban Resists Pakistani Troops

Pakistani troops attacked Taliban rebel bases from the air on Sunday, but the Islamist militants put up strong resistance. More than 100,000 people have left South Waziristan, the border region, which U.S. officials have called the most dangerous place on earth, as it has become a last refuge for fighters linked to the Taliban or al Qaeda. After Sunday’s heightened offensive, 60 militants and five soldiers are dead, according to Pakistani sources. Twenty-eight thousand Pakistani troops have been sent to attack approximately 10,000 Taliban militants blamed for more than 2,250 deaths in the past two years and a recent escalation of attacks against the nation. Spokespeople on both sides of the conflict tried to project confidence, and representatives of the Taliban warned of consequences for supporters of Barack Obama: “The government has put the country’s sovereignty at stake to please Obama,” said spokesman Azam Tariq, and “we’ll attack his well-wishers everywhere.”