Islamabad, July 30 - Pakistani security forces have opened a new battleground against the Taliban in the country's Ashrai Dara area in North West Frontier Province (NWFP), a media report said Thursday.

The authorities have also clamped an indefinite curfew Wednesday in Almas and Palaram areas, in the Upper Dir district of the NWFP, The Nation newspaper reported on its website.

Seven houses of the militants, including the house of militant commander Bakht Jahan, were set on fire, while three militants were captured in the overnight clashes, the report said.

However, the curfew in Maidan tehsil in lower Dir district as well as many areas in the Swat Valley, such as Mingora, Fizagat and Shangla, among others, has been relaxed Thursday morning.