Pro-Taliban militants have rejected the Pakistani army's claims that the military has captured most areas under their control.

The militants said on Wednesday that they had voluntarily withdrawn to the mountains to tap the army in the area. They promised to continue their guerilla war against the army.

Earlier on Tuesday, Pakistani commanders said that troops had captured most of the towns that were once under the militants' control in the area, advancing faster than expected in their four-week long offensive.

However, Chief Military Spokesman Major General Athar Abbas noted that some militants might have slipped out of the war zone.

This is while; Pakistani security forces said over 20 militants were killed during a military operation in the restive northwestern region. Local witnesses, however, say several civilians were killed as a result of the army's bombardment of the area.

Pakistan's recent offensive against the militants has displaced more than 250,000 people.

RZS/SS/RE