As the U.S.-led hunt for Osama bin Laden intensifies, Pakistan is stepping up pressure on fugitive Al Qaeda fighters and the tribesmen suspected of harboring them in the frontier region bordering Afghanistan, military officials said Sunday. Pakistan has massed more than 70,000 soldiers in the tribal area, and they are escalating their search for local Al Qaeda sympathizers before a major new assault against the terrorist network in the mountainous region, the officials said. The latest operation offers an example of what U.S. officials have described as a dramatic improvement in the level of cooperation from Pakistan in the hunt for Al Qaeda fugitives. The 70,000 soldiers include paramilitary forces, regular soldiers and specially trained commandos, said Pakistan’s military spokesman, Gen. Shaukat Sultan. “They are ready and prepared for any operation at any time,” he said. Full Story