ISLAMABAD: Seven terrorists were killed, and a soldier was martyred in separate encounters across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday, according to official sources.
D.I. Khan Operation
Security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in the Maddi area of Dera Ismail Khan district on the night of February 8-9, following reports of armed militants in the region, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) stated.
During the exchange of fire, three terrorists were killed, and two others sustained injuries.
Sources revealed that the slain militants were skilled in crafting improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and bombs and were responsible for multiple terrorist activities. Following the operation, security forces launched a search mission to track down any remaining accomplices.
Mir Ali Encounter
Another counterterrorism operation was carried out in Mir Ali tehsil, North Waziristan. Security forces engaged in heavy gunfire with militants, killing four terrorists and wounding three others.
ISPR confirmed that a sanitization operation was ongoing in the area to eliminate any remaining threats, reaffirming the security forces’ commitment to eradicating terrorism from the country.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif commended the security forces for their successful operations against the “Fitna-al-Khawarij” terrorists in D.I. Khan and North Waziristan, according to the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP).
Hassan Khel Clash
Meanwhile, a soldier was martyred, and three others were injured during an armed encounter with terrorists in the Hassan Khel subdivision, near the Peshawar-Kohat border.
Security sources indicated that the operation targeted militants linked to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), though reports of terrorist casualties remained unconfirmed.
No official statement had been issued by ISPR regarding the Hassan Khel incident as of Sunday night.
The clash erupted around 8:15 AM during a joint IBO conducted by the police, Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD), and security forces in the Rokhan Khel village of Kandao area, Hassan Khel subdivision.
“The firefight lasted for hours as security personnel surrounded several abandoned houses. Raheem, a key figure of the banned TTP, and two of his accomplices were killed,” an official stated.
A combing operation was initiated but later postponed due to nightfall.
