DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (May 31, 2009)--Fighting in a northwest tribal region of Pakistan could raise the odds that the army will extend an offensive to semi-autonomous tribal areas near Afghanistan.

It's an area where al-Qaeda and the Taliban have long proliferated.

Taliban fighters clashed with Pakistani troops in South Waziristan in a round of battles that killed dozens just as the military savored its victory over insurgents in the Swat Valley's main city.

Two intelligence officials estimate that 50 militants and two soldiers were killed.

The militant attacks could also be attempts to distract the military's focus from Swat.

U.S. and other officials want Pakistan to clear its border region of al-Qaeda and the Taliban militants who use it as a base to plan and launch attacks on Western forces in Afghanistan.