SAMANA (Reuters/AFP) - Forces, backed by helicopter gunships, killed at least 20 militants after a security checkpost was attacked in Orakzai on Wednesday, a day after the military announced victory there. The fighting broke out in Shahhu village, about 90 km east of Orakzais main town of Kalaya. They fired rocket-propelled grenades on the checkpost and killed one soldier. Then we responded quickly and killed 10 militants, Sajjad Khan, a government official in the region, told Reuters. Khan said helicopter gunships later attacked militant positions nearby, killing 10 Taliban and destroying six hideouts. The army on Tuesday announced victory against the Taliban in the militants stronghold of Orakzai, saying it was winding up a three-month offensive there. Military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas told AFP that major operations in Orakzai were over, although stabilisation operations may continue. There are very small pockets of resistance which are being cleared, but the major population centres have been cleared and that includes the passes that were connected to the Tirah valley in the north, he said. Since March 26, 46 soldiers and 106 militants had been killed in Orakzai, Abbas said. Around 333 suspects were arrested and 200 military personnel wounded, he added. Forces opened a new front in Orakzai on March 24 in a bid to flush out Taliban who escaped a major assault last year on South Waziristan, which the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) leadership turned into its headquarters.