- Claims on security forces’ involvement in the attack are ‘entirely baseless’ and part of a ‘coordinated disinformation campaign’: ISPR
- Protesters demand probe into strike allegedly by a quad-copter that killed five in Mir Ali
ISLAMABAD: India-backed Fitna al-Khwarij behind attack in Mir Ali, North Waziristan, said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on Wednesday, referring to the strike that killed four children and triggered a protest by local tribesmen on Monday.
The ISPR in a statement dispelled the claims of the security forces’ involvement in the attack as “entirely baseless” and part of a “coordinated disinformation campaign” aimed at discrediting counterterrorism efforts in the region.
“An investigation launched into the incident found that the killings were orchestrated by Fitna al-Khwarij, a group Islamabad accuses of being funded and directed by Indian intelligence agencies.
“These elements — acting at the behest of their Indian masters — continue to exploit civilian areas and vulnerable populations as shields to conduct acts of terrorism,” the statement said.
The military said such tactics are meant to create rifts between the local population and security forces. Despite the attack, officials said the armed forces remain committed to their mission. “Efforts are ongoing to ensure those responsible for this inhuman act are brought to justice,” the statement added.
According to local sources, five people, including a woman, were also injured in the incident which was allegedly caused by ammunition drop by a quad-copter on a house in the Hurmus village of Mir Ali. The ages of the deceased children ranged from eight years to just two months.
Locals rushed the injured to the Mir Ali tehsil hospital, where some of the injured are also said to be in critical condition. The incident has triggered a wave of anger and grief, with residents staging a sit-in protest at Mir Ali Chowk since Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the protest against the alleged drone strike continued for a second day on Wednesday.
One of the protest organisers and a local PTI leader Allama Iqbal Dawar informed the media that talks with the local administration were going on and both sides have not yet develop a consensus.
The organisers said that they would take the protest to Islamabad if their demands were not accepted.
Tribal elders also decided to visit villages in the area to seek support for the possible “march on Islamabad.”
On Monday, the ISPR said 12 terrorists of “Indian proxy” outfits were killed by security forces while two personnel were martyred in separate engagements in KP and Balochistan.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the intelligence-based operations (IBOs) were conducted on Saturday and Sunday against the banned militant Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan group in KP and the proscribed Balochistan Liberation Front in Balochistan.
It said an IBO was conducted in Lakki Marwat district during which troops engaged the enemy at its location and sent “five Indian sponsored” terrorists to “hell”.
In a second IBO in Bannu district, two “Indian sponsored” terrorists were “successfully neutralised” by the security forces.
It added that terrorists ambushed a security forces convoy in another incident in North Waziristan district’s general area of Mir Ali, adding that two “Indian sponsored” terrorists were “neutralized” after the effective response of troops.
“However, during the intense fire exchange, two brave sons of soil, Sepoy Farhad Ali Turi (age: 29 years, resident of Kurram district) and Lance Naik Sabir Afridi (age: 32 years, resident of Kohat district) having fought gallantly, paid the ultimate sacrifice and embraced martyrdom.”
In the first Balochistan encounter, troops engaged the terrorists at their location in Awaran district’s general area of Gishkur and killed “Indian-sponsored terrorist Younas” in an intense fire exchange, while two more were injured.
“In another engagement in Turbat City, Kech district, security forces successfully neutralised two Indian-sponsored terrorists; terrorist ring leader Sabr Ullah and terrorist Amjad alias Bichoo,” the ISPR said.
It added that weapons, ammunition and explosives were recovered from the terrorists, who were actively involved in multiple activities against law enforcement agencies and target killing of innocent civilians.
Last month, ISPR Director General Lt-Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry accused India of activating its “proxy assets” to intensify terrorist attacks in Pakistan, presenting “irrefutable evidence” of Indian state-sponsored terrorism, directed by the Indian military personnel.
“Post-Pahalgam, because of the designs of terrorism that they have, they tasked all their assets, the terrorists operating in Balochistan, and we have credible intelligence for that, the Fitna-al-Khawarij and the independent terrorist cells … to increase their activity,” he had said, using the state-designated term for the banned TTP.
Pakistan has been grappling with an alarming surge in terror violence and attack, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, after the TTP ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022.
Militant attacks and security operations intensified in March, with the number of militant attacks surpassing 100 for the first time since November 2014, according to a report by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies.
Pakistan ranked second in the Global Terrorism Index 2025, with the number of deaths in terrorist attacks rising by 45 per cent over the past year to 1,081.
