Hundreds of heavil-armed pro-Taliban militants Wednesday surrounded a police station and dozens of law enforcers manning it in Pakistan's restive North-West Frontier Province (NWFP), officials said.
Tensions started in Hangu district when the police arrested seven militants after a brief exchange of fire. The captured insurgents belonged to the group of top local Taliban leader Baitullah Mehusd, a security official said, the dpa reported.
Following the arrests, more than 300 of their comrades surrounded a police station and demanded the release of the insurgents.
Military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas confirmed the incident without giving the exact numbers of security personnel held hostage inside the police station.
"A battalion of Pakistan army has been dispatched to the area to tackle the situation in Hangu," he said.
The tribal elders were holding negotiations with the militants to resolve the issue.
Hangu district is located near South Waziristan, a tribal district which has sanctuaries of al-Qaeda and Taliban militants launching attacks on NATO-led international forces in Afghanistan.
They are led mainly by Mehsud, who is believed to have ordered many of the dozens of suicide attacks on Pakistani security forces and political leaders, including former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, over the last one year.