ISLAMABAD — Pakistani troops and militants battled near the edge of the top Taliban commander’s stronghold Thursday as violence in the country’s volatile northwest spread and intensified, with multiple battles killing scores of insurgents.
The clashes near the border with Afghanistan were sparked by militant attacks, however, and there was no sign that the military was launching a new major offensive in the lawless tribal belt where the Taliban and al-Qaeda have entrenched themselves in recent years.
Officials in Washington say privately they would like the Pakistani army to extend its ongoing operation to oust the Taliban from the northwestern Swat Valley region into North and South Waziristan. Both areas are hotbeds of militant activity that al-Qaeda and the Taliban are accused of using as bases to foment violence against American troops in Afghanistan.
Pakistan has not announced plans for a new offensive in the tribal belt, and may first want to finish the Swat operation and deal with the huge humanitarian crisis it spawned. More than 2 million people have been uprooted from their homes by the fighting, and about 200,000 are living rough in refugee camps.
But fighting has spilled out of Swat in the past week, as militants stepped up attacks on security forces in retaliation for the offensive and the army has replied with artillery, gunships and assault forces in some areas.
Clashes also continued in several areas in Swat, the army said. The military says it has killed more than 1,300 militants during the offensive and reclaimed most of the region.
The CIA, which believes al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden is still in Pakistan, is hoping to close in on him.
CIA Director Leon Panetta told reporters after a speech Thursday on Capitol Hill that finding bin Laden remains one of the spy agency’s top priorities.
“I guess one of our hopes is that as Pakistani military moves in, combined with our operations, we may have a better chance to get at him,” Panetta said.
