Soldier, Three Militants Killed in Northwest Pakistan Clash

A soldier and three militants have been killed in fighting in restive northwestern Pakistan near the Afghan border, the military said on Saturday.

The four were killed in an exchange of fire in the Boya area of North Waziristan tribal district, the military said in a statement to the media.

"Three terrorist were killed, a naib subedar (junior officer) of Pakistan Army also embraced Shahadat (martyrdom) in exchange of fire with terrorists," the statement said.

The Pakistani Taliban, meanwhile, confirmed the military had killed one of its commanders, but did not specify when.

"Commander Mohammad Hassan embraced martyrdom while fighting against the Pakistani soldiers," Shahid Ullah Shahid, spokesman for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), told AFP.

"Hassan was also fighting against NATO troops in Afghanistan and was recently released from Kabul prisons where he spent a couple of months," Shahid said.

He added that Pakistani Taliban chief Maulana Fazlullah led funeral prayers for the slain commander.

In June, the army began major offensives in North Waziristan aimed at clearing the area of insurgent groups, including the Taliban, after a bloody raid on Karachi Airport ended faltering peace talks.

Residents have said many civilians have died in air strikes, but as the conflict zone is off-limits to journalists, there is no way to independently verify the number and identity of those killed.

North Waziristan has become a major base for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (Pakistani Taliban), which rose up against the state in 2007.

The United States has long called for action in the area because the militant groups have targeted NATO forces in neighboring Afghanistan.

Pakistan's army says it has killed more than a thousand militants and lost 86 soldiers since the start of the operation.