Forces zero in on Ladha

Published: November 05, 2009

Agencies add: Fighting has been intensified in recent days after security forces zeroed in on three main militant bases - Sararogha, Makeen and Ladha - in their three-pronged offensive.
Security officials say the militants’ “command and control structure” is in the three bases and they expect stiff resistance from Taliban defenders. The Army said at the weekend that government forces had converged on Makeen from three directions.
The fall of the bases would be a major setback for the Taliban but security analysts say the militants could step up attacks in towns and cities to put pressure on the government and try to sap its resolve. A senior military official told AFP the Army had “taken” the strategic town of Sararogha in the third week of fighting, while 30 insurgents were reported killed in the last 24 hours.
Sararogha shot to local infamy as the operational centre of former Tehreek-e-Taliban warlord Baitullah Mehsud, who was killed in a US drone attack in August.
Pakistan launched its fierce air and ground offensive into the northwest region on October 17, with some 30,000 troops backed by fighter jets and gunship helicopter laying siege to Tehreek-e-Taliban boltholes. So far, the military has claimed to have killed more than 390 militants since the operation began, while 37 troops lost their lives.

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