Taliban video shows 16 men executed by firing squad

(Reuters)

The Pakistan Taliban has released a chilling video that shows militants killing 16 Pakistani policemen and tribal guards after declaring them to be "enemies of Islam".

In the recording, a Taliban commander loudly taunts a line-up of sombre-faced men dressed in salwar kameez, with their hands tied behind their backs. "These are the enemies of God's religion," the militant declares. "They are apostates."

The commander accuses the police officers of killing six children in the Swat Valley, once a Taliban stronghold. His face shrouded in a scarf, he says that "Allah" has assigned him to execute them. Then a crackling barrage of automatic gunfire is heard.

The policemen tumble backwards on to a mound. Some of the bullets miss their mark, causing clouds of white dust to rise in the air. The police can be heard screaming as the weapons continue to empty.

As the officers lie lifeless on the ground, a militant reloads his weapon. Walking slowly between the bodies, with the camera following closely behind, the Taliban fighter fires a further bullet into each of their heads.

The Pakistani military's chief spokesman, Major-General Athar Abbas, acknowledged the authenticity of the video. The executions happened, he said, after militants crossed the border on 1 June from Afghanistan into Upper Dir, an area they once controlled.

During the raid, about 60 militants led by three commanders killed 30 security personnel in the area and torched six schools. The militants had come from Afghanistan's Kunar province, where they have been sheltering since a sweeping military offensive in 2009 crushed their strongholds and scattered their fighters.

In recent weeks, hundreds of Taliban insurgents have launched successive raids across the Durand Line that divides the two countries. The Pakistan military claims that militant leaders from Swat, Bajaur and Mohmand have a sanctuary on the east bank of the Kunar River.

Tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan flared as Pakistani forces retaliated with heavy shelling. The government of the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, condemned the loss of innocent Afghan lives.