Militants killed three members of anti-Taliban militias and left the beheaded bodies of two of them in a market in northwest Pakistan, official sources said.
The beheaded bodies of two volunteers of a 'lashkar' or anti-Taliban militia were placed by the militants at Saifaldar Bazar in the restive Orakzai tribal region. Both volunteers were killed in a recent clash with militants, the sources said.
In a separate incident, Taliban militants killed Mumtaz Mithakhel, the chief of a "peace committee" or anti-militant militia in Hangu district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.
Police arrested six suspects in a search operation that was launched after the killing. Police and security forces also killed two suspected militants and arrested eight persons during a search operation in Ali Khel village, seven kilometres northwest of Tank district in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, official sources said.
A large quantity of arms and ammunition were recovered during a house-to-house search in the village. The security forces launched the search following a tip-off on Saturday.
The two suspected militants were killed when they fired at security forces, the sources said.