KABUL - Pakistani troops killed 30 Afghan militants who crossed the border and attacked the army, military officials said on Monday. The group of more than 200 Afghans conducted the raid on Sunday evening. The incident may further damage the already difficult relationship between Afghanistan and Pakistan, which often accuse each other of failing to halt cross-border operations by militants.

"The attack happened in the Barawal area of Upper Dir," one of the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told Reuters. "Pakistani forces retaliated and the intruders slipped back."

One Pakistani soldier was killed and four were wounded in this latest frontier clash, which lasted close to an hour, the Pakistani officials said.
There was no independent confirmation of the number of militants killed.