Tribal leader, son killed by militants

A leading pro-government tribal elder and peace committee member was abducted and shot dead along with his young son by militants in the Chamarkand area of Bajaur Agency in the early hours of Wednesday.
The officials at Khar headquarters of Bajaur Agency said tribal elder Afsar Khan and his son Sher Alam Khan were leading the volunteers watching the village at night. In early hours a group of militants abducted Afsar and his son and shot them dead after taking them a few yards away from the volunteers. The officials said dozens of militants, armed with modern weapons, abducted both the leading tribal figures and killed them.
There was no resistance from the other volunteers as they had been warned by the militants. Afsar Khan, 54, was one of the tribal leaders counted the most loyal to government functionaries. He had backed all military actions against militants in the area. On receiving information, the high-ups ordered a search operation in the area, but the militants succeeding in fleeing the village. It is worth mentioning that high-ranking military officials recently visited Bajaur Agency and announced it had been cleared of militants.