Nine terrorists killed in KP, Balochistan IBOs: ISPR

RAWALPINDI: Security forces killed nine militants, including a suicide bomber, during separate intelligence-based operations (IBOs) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, the military’s media wing said on Monday.

In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said an IBO was conducted in Dera Ismail Khan on Monday on the reported presence of “khawarij belonging to Indian proxy, Fitna-al-Khawarij”—a term used by the state for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

According to the ISPR, security personnel engaged the militants’ location, and after an intense exchange of fire, four were killed. Weapons and ammunition were recovered from the slain militants, who it said had been involved in multiple terrorist activities in the area.

In a separate statement earlier in the day, the ISPR said five militants, including a suicide bomber, were killed during an IBO in Pishin district of Balochistan on Sunday.

The military’s media wing stated that the militant formation was engaged with multiple weapons. During the exchange, the suicide bomber detonated himself, while four other militants were killed by security forces. Arms, ammunition, and explosives were also recovered from the site.

The ISPR said sanitisation operations were under way in both areas to eliminate any remaining militants. It added that the counter-terrorism campaign under the vision of "Azm-i-Istehkam," approved by the Federal Apex Committee under the National Action Plan, would continue at full pace to eradicate foreign-sponsored terrorism from the country.

Separately, a spokesperson for Balochistan’s Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) confirmed the Pishin operation, stating that the militants had allegedly planned to target the police lines and Cadet College Pishin.

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif commended the security forces for the operation in Pishin, according to state-run Radio Pakistan.

The president described the operation against “Fitna al Khawarij” as reflective of the nation’s resolve against terrorism and vowed that the fight would continue until complete eradication of the threat. The prime minister said security forces were making steady progress against militant groups and reaffirmed that the nation stood with the armed forces and law enforcement agencies.

The latest operations follow recent actions by the CTD, which said on February 18 that 14 suspected militants were killed in separate operations in Quetta and Barkhan districts. A day later, the ISPR reported that four militants were killed in an IBO in Lakki Marwat district of KP.

The operations come amid an intensified counter-terrorism drive as authorities grapple with a challenging security situation in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.