More than 50 people, most of them foreigners, have been killed in clashes between al-Qaeda-linked militants and Pakistani tribesmen today, Pakistan's interior minister said.
Fighting in the South Waziristan tribal region broke out earlier this month between foreign fighters, most of them believed to be Uzbeks, and Pashtun tribesmen after the militants tried to kill a pro-government tribal leader.
The fighting marks a breakdown in relations between the foreign militants and tribesmen who had hitherto sheltered them.
The latest clashes erupted on Wednesday after attempts to broker a truce failed. Fighting intensified today.
"Around 54 people have been killed. Among them 45-46 are foreign militants," Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao told Reuters.
Sherpao said around 177 foreign militants had been killed in clashes since last week.