The bullet-riddled bodies were dumped on a roadside in Miranshah, the main town of North Waziristan tribal district and a known hub of Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked militants. – File Photo by Reuters

MIRAMSHAH: Taliban militants in Pakistan's lawless northwestern tribal belt on Tuesday shot dead four local tribesmen they accused of spying for the United States, officials said.

The bullet-riddled bodies were dumped on a roadside in Miramshah, the main town of North Waziristan tribal district and a known hub of Taliban and al Qaeda-linked militants.

Officials said notes pinned on their chests purportedly from Pakistani Taliban read: “We killed them because they were spying for America, anyone who acts like this will face the same fate.” Local administrative official Syed Noor Shah told AFP: “We have recovered all the four dead bodies. They are local tribesmen aged between 25 and 40.

“The notes pasted on their chests were from Pakistani Taliban.” Two local intelligence officials confirmed the incident, saying the bodies were beyond recognition because militants had repeatedly shot the victims in the face.

Militants frequently kidnap and kill tribesmen in the troubled region, accusing them of spying for the Pakistan government or US forces in neighbouring Afghanistan, where Taliban fighters have been waging a vicious insurgency for nine years. – AFP