Pakistan's military says air strikes in a northwestern tribal region near the Afghan border have killed 43 militants.
The military said the militants were killed on August 20 in two villages within the North Waziristan tribal region.
It gave no details about the identities or nationalities of the slain militants.
The information could not be corroborated as journalists are barred from tribal areas.
Hours after the air strikes Major General Asim Bajwa announced the launch of ground operations in the Shawal valley of North Waziristan.
Analysts said the launch suggests the military is in the latter stages of its offensive in the region.
Pakistan’s army has been carrying out a major military operation in North Waziristan since June 2014 in an attempt to eliminate local and foreign militants.
Since then, the military says it has cleared militants from more than 90 percent of North Waziristan and killed about 3,000 militants.
