TANK/MIRAMSHAH, Jan 22: Five soldiers were killed and seven others were wounded when militants attacked an observation post and the Laddah fort in South Waziristan on Tuesday, the ISPR said.

(At least 37 militants were killed when the security forces repulsed the attack, Reuters quoted the army as saying.

The military had said earlier that militants had suffered heavy casualties in the attack. It later said it had determined through communication intercepts and its own sources that 37 militants had been killed.)

Also on Tuesday, Baitullah Mehsud, the amir of the so-called Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan and head of the Mehsud militants, warned of attacking the headquarters of intelligence agencies and sensitive installations in Islamabad if the military did not stop the operation in Waziristan.

“We will target sensitive installations in Islamabad, including the headquarters of intelligence agencies, if the military does not stop its operation,” Baitullah’s spokesman Maulvi Umar told Dawn by phone from an undisclosed location.

He claimed that 10 soldiers had been killed and 13 security personnel, including three commandos from the Special Services Group, had been captured in the onslaught on the Laddah fort. Six personnel were wounded, he said.

But the ISPR confirmed the death of five soldiers and injuries to seven others in a statement it posted on its website. It did not say if any soldier had fallen into the hands of militants.

In the adjoining North Waziristan tribal region, insurgents attacked the camp of Shawal Rifles, killing two soldiers and wounding seven others. Sources said that five militants were wounded in a gun-battle.

According to the ISPR, the observation post and the main Laddah fort was attacked at about 1 am. It said that the assailants also suffered casualties.

Maulvi Umar claimed that the militants were still holding the Sipla Toi and Sararogha forts they had captured last week. He warned that militants would intensify their attacks and would capture all pickets and forts in the Mehsud area of South Waziristan.

He also claimed responsibility for the murder of a senior official of the Intelligence Bureau in Charsadda district on Sunday and also for a clash with police in Mardan.

In a related development, a spokesman for militants in North Waziristan, Ahmadullah Ahmadi, asked the military authorities not to use bases in their area against insurgents in South Waziristan.

“Taliban will withdraw from peace talks if security forces use our soil against us,” Mr Ahmadi said. Militants in North Waziristan had on Monday extended a ceasefire till Jan 27. As clashes continued between security forces and militants in the Mehsud area, troops pounded suspected locations. Jet fighters were seen in the air but they did not attack any location.

In the Makin area, a shell hit a house killing three tribesmen and wounding five others.

Sources said that militants from the Mehsud area also made forays into the adjacent Razmak subdivision in North Waziristan on Tuesday to attack the base camp of Shawal Rifles at about 2pm. Several rockets and missiles were fired at the base camp.

Security forces fired back and helicopter gunships were also engaged to repulse the attack.

These sources said that nine soldiers were wounded and two of them died in hospital. Five militants also suffered injuries, according to the local people. Heavy clashes continued till evening in which troops used heavy artillery.