ISLAMABAD, May 1 (Xinhua) -- At least three soldiers were killed and seven others injured in a cross-border attack by militants from the Afghan side on Pakistani security forces, a military statement said on Wednesday.
About 60 to 70 militants attacked Pakistani army personnel busy in border fencing in the country's northwest tribal district of North Waziristan, the military's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in the statement.
The security forces effectively foiled the attack by taking timely action against the militants, killing and injuring scores of them, and forcing the others to retreat.
The military reiterated its resolve to continue fencing the border despite challenges in moves to curb cross-border terrorism and asked Afghan authorities to take measures to stop militants who use Afghanistan's soil for terror plots.
"While Pakistan security forces are solidifying border security through fencing and construction of forts to deny liberty of action to the terrorists, Afghan Security Forces and the authorities need to have more effective control in the border region to support Pakistan's efforts as well as deny the use of Afghan soil against Pakistan," the ISPR said.
Earlier in a press briefing, ISPR Director General Major General Asif Ghafoor said that his country has completed fencing of some 1000 km border with Afghanistan, and a major decline in the number of cross-border attacks and other terrorist activities along the border areas have been witnessed after the fencing.
Pakistan shares a 2200-km-long border with Afghanistan, and the ISPR officer said that further improvement is expected after the completion of the fencing in the remaining area.
