ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- At least 10 Pakistani troops are dead and dozens are missing after a confrontation near the country's border with Afghanistan, according to reports.
Local media also reported that coalition jets -- some mentioned a drone -- violated Pakistani air space and bombed two areas in the Mohmand Agency, where the fighting took place.
Between 10 and 13 members of Pakistan's Frontier Corps, which uses recruits from tribal areas and is overseen by Pakistani Army officers, died in the border confrontation according to local news reports. Another 40 troops were missing, the reports said.
The Army was working to confirm the number of casualties and the circumstances of the attack, said the spokesman, Lt. Col. Baseer Haider Malik.
Several Pakistani newspapers said Afghan troops attacked a checkpoint in Mohmand Agency, a disputed region named for the Pashtun tribe the Mohmands. The tribe exists in large numbers both in Pakistan and southeastern Afghanistan, and both countries often claim Mohmand as part of their territory.
Pakistani and Afghan troops have engaged in border skirmishes several times in recent years.
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Malik said media reports of coalition aircraft being involved "seemed accurate," but the military was awaiting more information from the region.
Afghan sources also told CNN that they had received word of a drone strike and of clashes between Afghan and Pakistani forces.
A spokesman for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan said its forces were fired upon near the border with Pakistan and they responded. The spokesman said additional information was unavailable.
ISAF is an alliance of about 40 nations charged with supporting the Afghan government in maintaining security.
In recent months, Pakistani officials have accused U.S-led forces of launching missile strikes into its territory from Afghanistan. One such attack in the tribal region of Bajaur killed 14 people on May 14.
The Pakistani army has said such attacks only made the job of securing the border more difficult.
"It's not fair," said General Athar Abbas, the army's top spokesman, in an interview with CNN. "The kind of effects it creates -- it's not only local. It's also within the country. And that is not good for any coalition.
"An act of this kind it certainly creates difficulties for both sides," he said.
Both Pakistan and Afghanistan are key U.S. allies in America's "war on terror."
Meanwhile, The Associated Press reported Wednesday that another 31 people had been killed by airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan.
Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary said most of the 31 were foreign fighters, AP reported.
However, Khalid Farooqi, a lawmaker from Paktika, said at least nine civilians were killed. The U.S.-led coalition said four civilians were killed and that several militants died in the clashes in northern Paktika province early Wednesday, AP reported.
Pakistan: 10 dead and dozens missing after border clash
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- At least 10 Pakistani troops are dead and dozens are missing after a confrontation near the country's border with Afghanistan, according to reports.
Local media also reported that coalition jets -- some mentioned a drone -- violated Pakistani air space and bombed two areas in the Mohmand Agency, where the fighting took place.
Between 10 and 13 members of Pakistan's Frontier Corps, which uses recruits from tribal areas and is overseen by Pakistani Army officers, died in the border confrontation according to local news reports. Another 40 troops were missing, the reports said.
The Army was working to confirm the number of casualties and the circumstances of the attack, said the spokesman, Lt. Col. Baseer Haider Malik.
Several Pakistani newspapers said Afghan troops attacked a checkpoint in Mohmand Agency, a disputed region named for the Pashtun tribe the Mohmands. The tribe exists in large numbers both in Pakistan and southeastern Afghanistan, and both countries often claim Mohmand as part of their territory.
Pakistani and Afghan troops have engaged in border skirmishes several times in recent years.
Don't Miss
* RAND: Pakistan helped Taliban
* Explosives seized near Pakistan capital
* Donors to pledge $15B to rebuild Afghanistan
* Suicide bombing brings British toll in Afghanistan to 100
Malik said media reports of coalition aircraft being involved "seemed accurate," but the military was awaiting more information from the region.
Afghan sources also told CNN that they had received word of a drone strike and of clashes between Afghan and Pakistani forces.
A spokesman for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan said its forces were fired upon near the border with Pakistan and they responded. The spokesman said additional information was unavailable.
ISAF is an alliance of about 40 nations charged with supporting the Afghan government in maintaining security.
In recent months, Pakistani officials have accused U.S-led forces of launching missile strikes into its territory from Afghanistan. One such attack in the tribal region of Bajaur killed 14 people on May 14.
The Pakistani army has said such attacks only made the job of securing the border more difficult.
"It's not fair," said General Athar Abbas, the army's top spokesman, in an interview with CNN. "The kind of effects it creates -- it's not only local. It's also within the country. And that is not good for any coalition.
"An act of this kind it certainly creates difficulties for both sides," he said.
Both Pakistan and Afghanistan are key U.S. allies in America's "war on terror."
Meanwhile, The Associated Press reported Wednesday that another 31 people had been killed by airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan.
Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary said most of the 31 were foreign fighters, AP reported.
However, Khalid Farooqi, a lawmaker from Paktika, said at least nine civilians were killed. The U.S.-led coalition said four civilians were killed and that several militants died in the clashes in northern Paktika province early Wednesday, AP reported.
