By Salman Masood The New York Times

Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani fired his defence secretary, a retired general and confidant of Pakistan's army chief, on Wednesday as the civilian government drew closer to a head-on collision with the country's powerful military leadership.

Taliban insurgents executed 15 kidnapped security troops and dumped their bodies on a hilltop in northwestern Pakistan on Thursday, government and military officials said, in retaliation for the killing of a militant commander by government forces.

Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani fired his defence secretary, a retired general and confidant of Pakistan's army chief, on Wednesday as the civilian government drew closer to a head-on collision with the country's powerful military leadership.

Taliban insurgents executed 15 kidnapped security troops and dumped their bodies on a hilltop in northwestern Pakistan on Thursday, government and military officials said, in retaliation for the killing of a militant commander by government forces.