Thirty-two terrorists killed in KP, Balochistan intelligence-based operations: ISPR

WEB DESK: Security forces killed 32 terrorists linked to ‘India-sponsored militant’ networks in separate operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan over the last 24 hours, the military’s media wing said on Wednesday.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the operations targeted Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) also called “Fitna al Khwarij” and, “Fitna al Hindustan” networks as part of ongoing efforts to clear terrorists and their facilitators from the two provinces.

In Khyber district of KP, security forces conducted multiple intelligence-based operations on the night between July 28 and 29, killing 24 terrorists affiliated with TTP after engaging several militant locations, according to the ISPR.

Separately, in Nushki district of Balochistan, security forces killed eight terrorists belonging to militants in Balochistan or Fitna al Hindustan following what the ISPR described as an intense exchange of fire. Weapons, ammunition and improvised explosive devices recovered from the sites were destroyed, the military said.

Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday also lauded security forces personnel for their successful operations, according to the PM Office Media Wing.

The prime minister praised the professional capabilities of security forces officers and personnel for killing 24 Khwarijis in Khyber district and eight Fitna al Hindustan terrorists in Nushki district.

“We will continue the war against terrorism until this menace is completely eliminated from the country,” the prime minister said, adding that security forces personnel were taking effective action against terrorists seeking to harm the country’s peace. He said the entire nation, including himself, stood shoulder to shoulder with the armed forces of Pakistan in their unwavering resolve to protect the homeland.

The ISPR said sanitisation operations were continuing in the areas to eliminate any remaining terrorists, and that the counterterrorism campaign, under the “Azm-e-Istehkam” framework approved by the Federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan, would continue “at full pace” against foreign-sponsored terrorism.