Pakistani officials say militants have beheaded two Pakistani soldiers who were captured in an attack in the country's northwest tribal area bordering Afghanistan.
The militants seized the soldiers after storming a security outpost on May 6 in Miranshah, capital of North Waziristan, in an assault that officials said left nine Pakistani soldiers dead and 12 others injured.
Responding to the attack, officials said army helicopters on May 7 shelled suspected militant hideouts and also struck three houses and a mosque in Miranshah.
Three civilians were reported killed and 20 were wounded in the strikes.
It remains unclear how many militants may have been killed.
The May 6 militant ambush came a day after a U.S. drone attack killed nine suspected militants in the Shawal area of North Waziristan, a hotbed of Islamist insurgent activity.
The militants seized the soldiers after storming a security outpost on May 6 in Miranshah, capital of North Waziristan, in an assault that officials said left nine Pakistani soldiers dead and 12 others injured.
Responding to the attack, officials said army helicopters on May 7 shelled suspected militant hideouts and also struck three houses and a mosque in Miranshah.
Three civilians were reported killed and 20 were wounded in the strikes.
It remains unclear how many militants may have been killed.
The May 6 militant ambush came a day after a U.S. drone attack killed nine suspected militants in the Shawal area of North Waziristan, a hotbed of Islamist insurgent activity.