At least 27 militants have been killed by Pakistani security officials in the country's tribal regions bordering Afghanistan, Press TV reported.
A spokesman for the Frontier Constabulary said Friday that nine militants were killed and ten others were injured in a sweep operation in Dogar village in the Kurram district.
Earlier in the day, dozens of militants attacked a military checkpoint in neighboring Orakzai district, triggering a firefight that left 18 militants dead, a military spokesman said.
According to the military official, the militants involved in the fighting had arrived from the nearby Khyber region, seeking to retake a checkpoint in the Orakzai tribal region.
Meanwhile, Pakistani forces successfully repelled the attack and captured four insurgents. Three soldiers are also reported to have been injured during the gun battle.
According to a UN report, more than 35,000 families or approximately 210,000 individuals have fled the military offensives and violence in Pakistan's tribal districts near the Afghan border since November 2009.
The mass exodus is from Orakzai and Kurram Agencies, which have been hit hard by pro-Taliban and Qaeda-linked militancy as well as sectarian violence, the UN report added.
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