Gun battles between local tribesmen and Uzbek al-Qaeda militants in the tribal area of South Waziristan in Pakistan grew in intensity on Thursday, with the body count rising to 126 after three days of clashes, Aaj TV had officials as saying. Further reports stated that 70 foreigners had been arrested as attempts to broker a cease-fire continued.

Earlier on Thursday, Pakistani Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao had put at 114 the number of people slain.

Sherpao had stated that 84 Uzbek militants and 30 local tribesmen, including nine civilians, had lost their lives during three days of fighting in the tribal area of South Waziristan.

Both sides were trading mortar, rocket and assault rifle fire in four separate areas of South Waziristan. Militant leaders and tribal elders from North Waziristan had previously attempted to bring about a ceasefire but the clashes again broke out Monday.

Pakistan's government, a key ally in the US-led war on terrorism, has long asked tribesmen to oust Central Asia and Arab militants from their lands Waziristan, but with little success so far. Pakistan's tribal regions were a key escape route for al-Qaeda following the fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2001. The region is still rumored to be a hidden base for al-Qaida leaders like Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahri. Furthermore, Waziristan has been a staging post for Taliban-led attacks on NATO and US soldiers across the border.

While the cause for the fighting in South Waziristan remains unclear, the Uzbek casualties could ease worry for Pakistan, amidst US reports that al-Qaeda is regrouping.

(Xinhua News Agency, China Daily via agencies, March 22, 2007)