ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan said Sunday that it was suspending a military operation against insurgents in a tribal region for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan but warned that any provocations in the area would bring immediate retaliation.
A Taliban spokesman welcomed the decision to halt the strikes in the Bajur tribal region, a rumored hide-out of Osama bin Laden near the border with Afghanistan.
In another part of the northwest, a blast blamed on a missile reportedly killed four suspected foreign militants. Residents said they saw a drone in the air shortly before the explosion, raising suspicion the U.S. was behind the strike.
Pakistan’s 5-month-old government at first tried peace talks with militants, but those efforts bore little fruit. It has turned to force in recent weeks, including using helicopter gunships and jets to strike suspected insurgent hide-outs.
The operation in Bajur began in early August. Interior Ministry chief Rehman Malik said Sunday the operation has killed more than 560 people believed to be Islamist insurgents and has displaced more than 300,000 people.
Malik did not commit to a formal end to the operation but said people displaced from Bajur could return to the region “without any fear.”
American officials have pressed Pakistan to crack down on militants in its tribal regions, fearing that those border zones are used by Taliban fighters and others linked to al-Qaeda who are involved in attacks on U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
The U.S. is suspected of launching missile strikes targeting alleged militant compounds along the border.
Malik said the suspension of operations in Bajur would take effect by early today, and army spokesman Maj. Murad Khan said the military had halted its activities by late Sunday.
On Sunday, a tribal council in the Salarzai area of Bajur warned Taliban militants they would be shot on sight and told residents not to shelter insurgents or risk loss of money and property, two elders told The Associated Press.
