WANA, April 4: Tribal volunteers inflicted heavy casualties on Uzbek militants in the restive South Waziristan tribal region on Wednesday, killing at least 44 of them. Reuters and other foreign news agencies quoted a tribal agency official as saying that between 50 to 60 Uzbeks were killed in the clashes.

Three paramilitary soldiers and one army personnel also lost their lives. However, officials did not say anything about where and how they were killed.

The officials also said that about 10 tribal volunteers and local militants supporting them were killed, but cautioned that the reports were sketchy and a clear picture was expected to emerge later in the night.

“There is heavy fighting going on here,” South Waziristan administrator Hussainzada Khan told Dawn on satellite phone.

As he spoke, a swish of a rocket followed by a bang was heard on the phone. “Did you hear that?” he asked, and said hundreds of tribal volunteers hunting Uzbek militants were exchanging heavy gunfire, mortars and rockets with a well-entrenched enemy.

“The Uzbeks are hardened fighters. They are holding their positions,” he said. Local people said several hundred armed volunteers were finding it hard to dislodge the militants from a concrete bunker atop a hill in Shin Warsak that was originally built by the army but was later vacated.

Well-placed sources said at least 53 combatants, including 44 Uzbek militants, three paramilitary soldiers and one army personnel, were killed in the gun-battle in Shin Warsak and Jaghundai areas. The figures could not be confirmed from independent sources.

The sources said 10 tribesmen loyal to anti-Uzbek militant commander Maulvi Nazir were killed and nine others were injured. Five soldiers of the paramilitary South Waziristan Scouts of the Frontier Corps were injured.

Tribesmen had raised a joint ‘Lashkar’ comprising 900 armed volunteers in Wana on Tuesday to flush out Uzbeks and their local collaborators from the Ahmadzai Wazir tribe-dominated areas of the agency. Both sides are using heavy weapons and attacking each other’s positions with rockets and machine-guns.

The sources said volunteers of the Lashkar attacked the positions of the Uzkebs and their local supporters in Shin Warsak and Jaghundai early in the morning. They claimed that security forces had also joined the Lashkar but government officials insisted their support was minimal and tribal volunteers were in the forefront. “It’s they who are taking the lead,” Mr Hussainzada said.

He said 25 Uzbeks were killed in Shin Warsak and 19 in Jaghundai. He said 40 militants from Turkmenistan had laid down their arms before the Lashkar. Their fate was not known.

“Tribesmen are beating war drums to motivate their fighters and encourage people to join the Lashkar,” said eyewitnesses.

The sources said tribal volunteers backed by paramilitary forces had dislodged Uzbeks and their local supporters from bunkers built on top of a hill in Shin Warsak area after a heavy gun-battle.

The tribal volunteers have consolidated their positions in the area and captured the bunkers.

Officials said the tribal Lashkar had entered Kaloosha and encircled the house of pro-Uzbek militant commander Noor Islam, but he was not in the house.

Other pro-Uzbek commanders from local tribes have also disappeared, fearing attacks from fellow tribesmen. The officials said pro-Uzbek militant commanders were now sending messages to the Lashkar led by Shireen Jan, expressing willingness to surrender, but the tribal force had ignored the offer.

One official confirmed the death of three personnel of the South Waziristan Scouts and an army soldier in the fighting. He said five paramilitary soldiers were wounded and were taken to a military hospital in the Wana camp.

The officials said clashes in the region had left at least 179 people dead since March 19. Among them, 134 were Uzbeks. The figures could not be confirmed from independent sources.

Agencies add: Up to 60 foreign militants, most of them Uzbeks, were believed to have been killed and about 40 had surrendered to the tribal force, Hussainzada Khan, the administrator of the South Waziristan region, told Reuters.

“We are receiving reports that 50 to 60 Uzbeks have been killed. We are checking these reports,” he said.

The Pakistan government has hailed the actions of the tribes, saying they show the success of peace deals with tribesmen that have been criticised by Western nations.