ISLAMABAD, April 29 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani forces on Wednesday continued their military offensive against Taliban militants in northwestern Pakistan's Buner district, about 100 kilometers from capital Islamabad, dropping parachuters by helicopters in the mountainous region.

    The army troops parachuted on strategic heights in different areas of Buner District of North West Frontier Province (NWFP) to flush the militants out of the region, official sources said.

    Pakistan army launched an operation in Buner district on Tuesday afternoon facing the Taliban expansion.

    The military spokesman Athar Abbas told a press conference on Tuesday that the militants would be cleared of the region within a week.

    Abbas said some 450 to 500 militants are present in different parts of Buner district.

    The Taliban in early April entered Buner district from the restive Swat valley and set up check points and patrolled the area. Taliban had promised to withdraw from Buner after talks with the NWFP government.

    "They had no plan to move out of Buner," said Abbas.