Taleban militants freed eight of the dozens of paramilitary troops and government officials they have been holding hostage for nearly two weeks in northwestern Pakistan, officials and a negotiator said on Friday. The release of the prisoners came two days after the military ended an operation in and around the town of Hangu in the region. The crackdown was launched after militants killed at least 15 paramilitary troops in an ambush and kidnapped nearly 50 soldiers and government officials to press for the release of their comrades. One government official was freed on Wednesday. The release of hostages came after a group of tribal elders held talks with the militants. Mufti Janan, a tribal negotiator, said efforts were under way to secure the release of the other hostages. “The militants are demanding release of at least three of their men including, Rafiuddin,” he said. Rafiuddin is a deputy of Pakistani Taleban chief Baitullah Mehsud, who is accused of being behind a wave of suicide attacks across the country over the past year, including the one that killed former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in December. Mehsud has denied involvement in Bhutto's killing. Militants blow up school Police say militants have blown up a girls school and 10 shops in volatile northwestern Pakistan. Police official Farman Khan says the attacks happened before dawn Friday in two separate areas of the troubled Swat Valley. There were no casualties. Authorities signed a peace deal with militants in Swat in May, ending months-long military operations against them. The militants promised to halt attacks against security forces. Violence has significantly decreased in Swat since then, but militants have returned from the mountains and reasserted their influence over parts of the valley and resumed attacks. Some hard-liners are opposed to the education of women.
