Pakistani security forces have killed 15 militants, including a senior commander, in separate clashes in the country"s northwest, officials said Thursday. The deadliest fighting was in Swat Valley. Ten suspects were killed in overnight fighting following a raid on a militant hide-out near the Swat Valley town of Kabal, Maj. Mushtaq Ahmed said. Those killed included Abu Faraj, the captured militant commander who had led the troops to the location, Ahmed said. Abu Faraj was captured in September and accused of plotting suicide bombings in the area. Five other militants were killed when security forces repelled attacks on three checkpoints in the Bajur area that borders Afghanistan, local official Adalat Khan was quoted as saying by The Associated Press.
