April 28, 2008	Monday	Rabi-us-Sani 21, 1429

GHALANAI, April 27: A man was executed in public by Taliban militants in the Rahim Korona area of the Mohmand Agency on Sunday.

The Taliban had sentenced Zaiver Khan to death after finding him guilty of hijacking vehicles and killing a number of people.

After the execution, the death toll in the ongoing clashes between the local militants and tribesmen rose to 13.

Three militants, three children and a woman were among the dead.

Local people said the militants had set on fire houses of several people belonging to the Dadukhel tribe and kidnapped six tribesmen.Over 1,000 militants with heavy weapons mounted on trucks besieged a locality near Michni and carried out house-to-house searches for alleged criminals.

Militants’ spokesman Maulvi Umar told journalists that the Taliban from Khyber and Bajaur agencies had also taken part in the clashes.

The execution was carried out in a field where a large number of militants had gathered around.

They brought the blind-folded man and, according to witnesses, a militant pointed his AK-47 rifle at his head and fired a shot as others raised the slogans of “Long Live Taliban”.

When he fell on the ground militants started dragging his body around.

Maulvi Umar said one Taliban fighter had been killed on Saturday.

He claimed that they were fighting with people who were involved in kidnapping and other anti-social activities.

Lower Mohmand’s assistant political agent Shahidullah Khan told journalists that clashes had stopped and there was calm in the area.

He said that a jirga had failed to resolve the issue through negotiations.