Militants from Afghanistan attack Pakistani post

Pakistan said dozens of Taliban infiltrated from Afghanistan to attack a checkpost, killing one soldier as mutual recriminations over cross-border attacks intensified.

It was the latest in a series of alleged cross-border incidents that have raised tensions between the neighbours even as officials confirmed exploratory peace contacts between Afghanistan, the United States and the Taliban.

There are Taliban strongholds on both sides of the border, but Afghan and US officials want Pakistan to do more to eradicate militant sanctuaries in its semi-autonomous tribal belt that is used to launch attacks in Afghanistan.

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Pakistan army spokesman Major General Athar Abbas said one soldier was killed and another wounded in the attack on the post in the tribal district in Bajaur, about 3km from the Afghan border.

"Since Bajaur has been cleared by the military, the military is present in the area so this attack has to come from the other side," he said.

Pakistan has repeatedly claimed to have eliminated the militant threat in Bajaur, one of seven districts in the tribal belt that Washington has called the global headquarters of al-Qaeda, but attacks on troops have continued.

Pakistan has complained that militants coming from Afghan bases have killed at least 55 paramilitary soldiers and tribal police over the last month. Afghan officials, in turn, have complained that Pakistan has launched hundreds of rockets into eastern Afghanistan since May, killing at least 40 people in areas about 125 miles (205 kilometers) east of Kabul.

In the latest attack, militants used mortar and rocket fire to cover their advance into the Bajur tribal area, said Shah Nasim, a local government official. Soldiers were eventually able to push the militants back over the border into Afghanistan's Kunar province when reinforcements arrived, he said.

One soldier and two militants were killed, said Nasim.

The Pakistan army denies it has intentionally fired rockets into Afghanistan, but acknowledges that several rounds fired at militants conducting cross-border attacks may have landed over the border.

Pakistan also blames the U.S. for the recent attacks since many American forces pulled out of Kunar over the last year to focus on more populated areas in Afghanistan.

The U.S., however, claims Pakistan has failed to launch an offensive against militants in the North Waziristan tribal area who regularly attack NATO troops in Afghanistan.