Pakistan army battles Swat Taliban

The Pakistani military says that it has killed more than 80 fighters in heavy fighting against several thousand Taliban loyalists in the country's northwest.As the fighting rages, tens of thousands of residents are fleeing the Swat valley area of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP).The army launched its major offensive on Wednesday, with reports of aerial support being used overnight into Thursday."The military offensive has continued overnight and into Thursday ... our producers on the ground say the curfew in the region has been lifted and will be reimposed at midnight [01:00 GMT]."The roads are blocked and there is very little transport for those fleeing the fighting, so they have taken to the roads on foot to reach IDP camps," he said."We are also hearing reports of jet fighters being used, that will be the first time in this battle and, if true, it is a very worrying development."