PESHAWAR: Pakistani fighter jets pounded militant hideouts in a rugged tribal region near the Afghan border on Tuesday, killing 18 fighters, an official said.

“Security forces targeted militant hideouts in different areas of Mohmand tribal region, killing 18 militants,” senior local administration official Maqsood Amin told AFP.

He added that the security forces also destroyed at least 10 militant hideouts.

“Most of the militants killed during the operation belonged to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Amin said.

The United States has branded the rugged tribal area, which lies outside Pakistani government control, a global headquarters of Al-Qaeda and the most dangerous place on Earth.

Under US pressure to crack down on militant havens along the Afghan border, Pakistan has in the past two years stepped up military operations against largely homegrown militants in the tribal regions.

Pakistan launched its most ambitious military offensive yet against Taliban militants in South Waziristan in 2009, expanding the campaign to many of the other seven semi-autonomous tribal districts along the border.

Washington says wiping out the militant threat in Pakistan's semi-autonomous tribal belt is vital to winning the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan and defeating Al-Qaeda.