Islamabad - At least 30 Taliban fighters were killed Thursday when government artillery fire destroyed their hideout in north-west Pakistan, residents and officials said, as concerns about the fate of thousands of refugees in the region grew amid an escalating humanitarian crisis.

Mohammad Ihsan, a local, told the German Press Agency dpa by phone that the militants had captured the house of a local mayor, Ziaul Haq, in the Hyasri area of the Lower Dir district and began firing at the military from the building.

"This morning, several artillery shells hit the building and flattened it," he said. "So far, 30 bodies have been recovered from it."

The army media centre in Dir confirmed the strike but said the numbers of Taliban killed could be 50 to 60.

Pakistani forces also pounded Taliban hideouts in the conflict-ridden Swat Valley Thursday as the Pakistan Army chief, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, had instructed troops "to ensure minimum collateral damage even at the expense of taking risks."

Regional authorities said an estimated 750,000 people had fled the latest fighting in the region, located 140 kilometres north-west of the capital, Islamabad, while the United Nations refugee agency said it had made more than 670,000 registrations.

These displaced civilians joined another 555,000 civilians uprooted because of militant violence since August.

Jet aircraft and attack helicopters struck militant positions Thursday in Swat and the adjoining district of Dir while special forces dropped into the Taliban stronghold of Peuchar pressed on with their "search and destroy mission," a security official said

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the number of casualties inflicted on the Taliban fighters were not known immediately but "several targets have been destroyed."

Gunfights were also reported in Mingora, Swat's main town, where militants have entrenched themselves in abandoned houses and planted roadside bombs to hit ground troops and fleeing civilians.

Up to 5,000 hardcore militants, some with links with al-Qaeda, are fighting the military in Swat, which used to be one of Pakistan's most popular tourist areas until 2007.

According to the military, more than 760 militants had been killed in the offensive, which had also left 33 soldiers dead.

Relief agencies have called for international help for Pakistan in dealing with the refugee crisis, which Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari termed "a human catastrophe."

Commentators said authorities must manage the refugee influx effectively, warning that a high count of civilian casualties and inappropriate rehabilitation could affect political and public support for the military's onslaught.

However, four civilians were killed Thursday when troops opened fire on their vehicle in the Gola Abad area of Lower Dir because they were violating a curfew, local journalist Haroon Rashid said. The dead were a couple, their child and driver, he said.

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said an all-party conference of political forces would be held next week to review the situation in Swat.

The premier also condemned the threats by Taliban fighters that they would kidnap the children of lawmakers from the Malakand region, which includes Swat, and eliminate their families, if the government did not end the operation in 10 days.

"These people are challenging the status of the elected representatives of the public," Gilani said in his speech in Pakistan's parliament. "We condemn such threats."

Most of the parliamentarians from Malakand have not been able to visit their constituencies and are spending most of their time in Islamabad. (dpa)