Security forces killed 10 militants affiliated with “India-sponsored Fitna al-Khawarij” during multiple engagements in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa between Sept. 15 and 17, while six soldiers were martyred in an improvised explosive device (IED) attack, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Thursday.
According to the military’s media wing, security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in North Waziristan district on reports of the presence of terrorists in the area. During the operation, security forces effectively engaged the militants’ position, killing six members of Fitna al-Khawarij after an intense exchange of fire, it added.
The state uses the term “Fitna al-Khawarij” to refer to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.
The military’s media wing said a separate encounter in Hangu district resulted in security forces killing four more terrorists, bringing the total number eliminated during the operations to 10. It said weapons and ammunition were recovered from the militants slain during the operations, adding the terrorists had been actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the area.
The ISPR said, on Sept. 17, an IED detonated near a security forces convoy, resulting in the martyrdom of six soldiers. It said sanitization operations are under way to eliminate any other militants who may still be present in the areas.
The military statement stressed the counter-terrorism campaign under Vision Azm-e-Istehkam, approved by the Federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan, would continue at full pace. It would, it vowed, eliminate foreign-sponsored and -supported terrorism from the country.
The ISPR said the sacrifices of the soldiers further reinforced the armed forces’ commitment to safeguarding the country.