The bullet-riddled bodies of 17 suspected militants were found Sunday in a Pakistani tribal region, witnesses and officials said.

The dead bodies were found in Darra Adam Khel, near Peshawar, the capital of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), and the local tribesmen informed the authorities.

Locals said that the bodies were laying in Tur Chapar area, where the security forces launched operation against the militants on Saturday.

Clashes between the security forces and militants have forced the local population to migrate to other areas, according to locals.

Darra Adam Khel, the area famous for arms manufacturing, has once been the stronghold of the Taliban militants. The security forces expelled them from the area and then the militants took shelter in the nearby mountains.