Security forces on Saturday held 16 men, including two commanders backing Taliban leader Fazlullah, and shut down three radio stations that had been airing FazlullahÂ’s speeches. Police said they had seized three FM transmitters, weapons, ammunition and cassettes of FazlullahÂ’s speeches. An FM transmitter and several audiocassettes were seized from the house of pro-Fazlullah commander identified as Ashraf, in Bara Bandai area of Kabal tehsil. Another radio transmitter and weapons and ammunitions were seized in a raid on the house of Muhammad Ali Shah Nadar in the same area. Nine suspected militants were arrested in a search operation. Two AK-47 assault rifles, 12 pistols and 150 bullets were seized during the operation.
A suspected militant commander, Chamnay Khan, was held from Chaparyal area of Matta tehsil, and security forces held four suspects at the Landakay checkpost.
A victim of the February 29 Mingora bombing died in a hospital in Peshawar on Saturday. The death toll in the bombing has now reached 53. More than 1,200 suspected militants had been arrested during the operation in Swat, police officials said on Saturday. Presiding over a meeting of police officers, Malakand DIG Syed Akhtar Ali Shah said 100 of them were being questioned and the rest had been sent to jails, he said. Those found innocent during investigation had been released, he added.