Overnight clash in Pakistan killed six Pakistani soldiers and 17 Taliban militants in a northwestern tribal district near the Afghan border.

Overnight clash in Pakistan killed six Pakistani soldiers and 17 Taliban militants in a northwestern tribal district near the Afghan border.

Some 50 Taliban fighters attacked Pakistani troops during a search operation in Jogi village of central Kurram tribal district late Tuesday, officials said.

"Six soldiers were killed and four injured in the clash. Troops repelled the attack and killed 17 militants," Sher Bahadar Khan, a local government official in Kurram told AFP.
The militants were Pakistani Taliban, the official said.

A senior official of Pakistan's paramilitary Frontier Corps confirmed the attack, and the casualties, and added that troops had taken control of the area.