22 India-backed militants killed in Khyber operation, says ISPR

ISLAMABAD: Security forces and law enforcement agencies killed 22 India-sponsored militants in an intelligence-based operation in Khyber district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on April 21, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations.

In a statement issued on Friday, the military’s media wing said the joint operation was launched after reports about the presence of India-backed militants, also referred to as Fitna al-Khawarij, in the area.

The ISPR said the militants opened indiscriminate fire in panic and in an effort to evade arrest during the operation. A 10-year-old child was martyred as a result; however, it added, "such sacrifices of our innocent civilians further strengthen our resolve."

According to the statement, weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the slain militants. The ISPR said those killed had been actively involved in multiple terrorist activities in the area. "Sanitisation operation is being conducted to eliminate any other Indian-sponsored kharji found in the area," the ISPR said, adding that the counter-terrorism drive under vision Azm-e-Istehkam would continue at full pace to eliminate what it described as foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country.

Security situation

Pakistan has seen an increase in cross-border militant activity, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, the two provinces that border Afghanistan, since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in 2021.

Amid the rise in attacks, Pakistan launched Operation Ghazab lil-Haq. Information Minister Attaullah Tarar had said that around 796 Afghan Taliban fighters and allied militants were killed during the operation.

The minister had also said that more than 1,000 Afghan Taliban fighters and militants were injured in Operation Ghazab lil-Haq, while 286 posts of the Afghan Taliban regime were destroyed and 44 were captured.

In October 2025, Pakistan and Afghanistan were also involved in border clashes after Afghan Taliban fighters and allied militants carried out unprovoked attacks on Pakistan’s border positions.

The subsequent fighting led to the deaths of more than 200 Taliban and affiliated militants, while 23 Pakistani soldiers were martyred in the line of duty.

The latest operation in Khyber comes as Pakistani authorities continue counter-terrorism actions in areas affected by militant violence.