The Swat valley in the North West Frontier Province was the scene of a fierce battle between security forces and followers of a radical Muslim cleric on Friday after authorities sent more than 2,000 soldiers to counter growing militancy.

At least 17 paramilitary soldiers and four civilians were killed in a suspected suicide attack near the valley’s main town of Mingora on Thursday.

The militants killed seven civilians and decapitated three soldiers and three policemen they had taken hostage in the nearby town of Matta on Friday.

Fighting flared in the village of Charbagh, around 3 miles west of Mingora on Sunday, when suspected militants fired at paramilitaries as they passed through the area. Helicopter gunships fired in retaliation, but there was no word on any casualties, a local official said.

Residents said tension was also rising in another town, Khwazakhela, about 15 miles west of Mingora.

“People are leaving their homes. All shops and markets are closed,” a scared resident of the town told Reuters by telephone. “The police and (paramilitary) Frontier Corps troops have taken positions in high buildings,” he added.

Another resident said police were making announcements through loudspeakers urging residents to move to safer places while the militants were sending reinforcements to the town.

Badshah Gul Wazir, a top official at the provincial home ministry, said he was not aware of the exodus of the people from Khwazakhela but the atmosphere was tense in Swat valley.

“There has been no incident of firing, so far, but the situation is tense,” he said.

Swat, a scenic valley, has seen a surge in militancy since Maulana Fazlullah, a pro-Taliban cleric, reportedly launched an illegal FM radio station and urged a  Muslim holy war.

BHUTTO VISIT
Karachi, PTI: Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto on Sunday visited families of victims of suicide bomb attacks on her homecoming convoy recently, vowing to continue her fight against extremism to usher in democracy in Pakistan.

Bhutto visited the victims of the Karachi bombings in Larkana. She said she was back in Pakistan to fight extremism and to give power to the people by ushering in democracy.