Pakistan army says 2 troops, 2 militants killed in shootout

ISLAMABAD (AP) — The Pakistani military says an army operation in the northwest targeting militants triggered a firefight that left two soldiers and two insurgents dead. The firefight happened Wednesday in Tirah, a former militant stronghold in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, the military said in a statement. It provided no details about the slain insurgents. The raid came a day after the military announced it had expanded operations against militants across the country, especially in the northwestern former tribal regions that once served as a base for the Pakistani Taliban. The group has waged an insurgency over the past 15 years.