By Aamir Latif
KARACHI
Five suspected Taliban militants were killed in a clash with security forces in the southern port city of Karachi on Wednesday, police said.
The clash occurred in a suburban neighborhood of the eastern district after police raided a militant hideout.
“The militants refused to surrender, and opened fire on the police team,” Rao Anwar, a senior police official, said. “Police returned fire killing all five militants hiding in a house.”
“The deceased belonged to the Pakistani Taliban's mother coaltion, Tehrik e Taliban Pakistan,” Anwar added.
Over 100 suspected Taliban militants have been killed in clashes with police in the past six months.
Local media blame Karachi police for staging several clashes to kill suspects who were already in custody in order to avoid a lengthy and cumbersome judicial process, a charge police deny.
Tehrik e Taliban Pakistan militants, who fled from the restive North Waziristan tribal region after an ongoing military operation, have reportedly established hideouts in various shanty areas of Karachi, the country's largest city.
