Pakistan yesterday rejected a ceasefire offered by Taliban militants in a troubled tribal region near the Afghan border as troops killed seven rebel fighters, officials said.
The militants in the Bajaur region offered a unilateral ceasefire as a two-week-old military operation left some 500 people dead.
"We have directed our militants to stop attacks against the government and security forces in Bajaur from today," Maulvi Omar, spokesman for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (Taliban Movement), told AFP.
The decision has been taken following talks with tribal elders, he said in a telephone call from unknown location.
"The jirga (elders' council) insisted that Taliban should stop fighting in the interest of the people of Bajaur."
The jirga has "assured" that troops will also suspend shelling and bombing raids in the area, he said.
"We are ready for talks with the government and the truce is an important development towards dialogue," Omar said.
But Advisor to Prime Minister on Interior Affairs Rehman Malik immediately rejected the offer.
"We will not accept the ceasefire," Malik told reporters in Islamabad.
"We do not believe in their verbal commitments. If they are sincere they should first surrender," he said, adding that tribal militants have violated their pledges in the past after troops stopped their operations.
Pakistani forces moved into Bajaur, a known hub of Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants, earlier this month. The government says at least 500 militants have been killed since then.
Troops fired artillery shells and gunship helicopters pounded suspected militant hideouts almost daily since the operation was mounted on August 6.
The offensive has displaced nearly 200,000 people in the region so far.