Group suspected of involvement in vehicle-borne improvised explosive device attacks against Chinese citizens
PESHAWAR:
Three suspected terrorists were killed, while three policemen were martyred, during a joint operation led by the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD), Elite Force and district police in Kabalgram area of Shangla district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), according to KP CTD spokesperson Muhammad Ali.
The intelligence-based operation was launched in a remote mountainous area of Kabalgram following confirmed reports of the presence of members of Fitna al-Khawarij (FAK), which the CTD described as a serious threat to law enforcement and key national projects, the spokesperson said.
Fitna al-Khawarij is a term used by the state to refer to terrorists affiliated with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.
According to the CTD spokesperson, the terrorists were hiding in natural caves with alleged local facilitation. He said the group had previously been involved in vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) attacks against Chinese nationals and posed an ongoing threat to the strategic road corridor near the Silk Road and related Chinese projects.
Security forces encountered the terrorists as they moved towards their hideouts, leading to an intense exchange of fire. Three terrorists were killed, including Noor Islam alias Salman alias Khog Bacha, a resident of Kabalgram and alleged ringleader of the group, who carried a reward of Rs 5 million.
One terrorist remains unidentified, while another reportedly detonated an explosive to avoid arrest.
Read: Three police officers martyred in Operation Shangla
After the deaths, other terrorists took refuge on a slope, which made a direct attack difficult. As CTD and Elite Force personnel moved forward to stop them, the accomplices allegedly launched attacks using rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) and automatic weapons to facilitate their escape, spokesman Muhammad Ali said. Security forces responded with retaliatory fire and repulsed the assault.
During the operation, three policemen – LHC Maqbool Ahmed (No. 438), LHC Fida Hussain and LHC Saeedur Rehman – were martyred. An Elite Force officer was injured and is undergoing treatment.
KP Inspector General of Police Zulfiqar Hameed said the dismantling of the network had averted a planned threat to strategic infrastructure in the region and that a search operation is still underway. He also paid tribute to the fallen personnel and said the KP Police had always made sacrifices in the line of duty.
Chinese citizens involved in regional infrastructure projects have long been targets of attacks. On March 26, 2024, six people, including five Chinese engineers, were killed in a suicide attack in Besham, located 18.8 km from Shangla.
Read more: At least two dead and 17 injured in IED blast in Bannu
An explosives-laden vehicle parked on the side of the road detonated as a convoy carrying Chinese engineers from Islamabad to the Dasu hydropower project site passed by.
This was the second attack against Chinese workers at the Dasu project.
In July 2021, at least nine engineers working on the Dasu project were killed in a suicide attack in the Kohistan region. Pakistan at the time accused Indian and Afghan intelligence agencies of being involved, although neither group publicly claimed responsibility.
