Security forces say six militants were killed in North Waziristan and five in Kurram during the IBOs.
Arms and ammunition were also recovered from the slain Khwarij in two IBOs. Source: ISPR
At least 11 Khwarij belonging to what the military described as Indian proxy Fitna Al Khwarij – a reference to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) – were killed in two separate clashes in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa on January 8, according to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
In a statement, the ISPR said security forces carried out an intelligence-based operation in North Waziristan district following reports of Khwarij presence in the area. Six militants were killed during the operation.
In a separate intelligence-based joint operation in Kurram district, carried out by police and security forces, five more Khwarij were killed, the statement said.
The ISPR said arms and ammunition were recovered from the militants, who were “actively engaged in numerous terrorist activities against security forces, law enforcement agencies and in targeted killing of innocent civilians.”
He added that sanitation operations were being carried out to eliminate any other kharji present in the area. Arms and ammunition were also recovered from the slain Khwarij, sponsored by India, who, the statement said, were still involved in terrorist activities and targeted killings.
Read: DG ISPR blames KP political environment for rise in terrorism
The army said the clearance operations are part of a “relentless campaign against terrorism” under the vision of “Azm and Istehkam”, approved by the Federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan. The campaign will continue “at full speed to eliminate the threat of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country,” according to the statement.
Earlier this week, ISPR Director General Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said that 80 percent of all terrorist incidents in Pakistan have occurred in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
At a news conference on Tuesday, the military’s top spokesman attributed the trend to what he described as a “politically permissive environment” for militants and an emerging “nexus between political and militant elements” in the province.
He said the prevailing environment had allowed extremist groups to organise, build facilitation networks and repeatedly challenge the mandate of the State, with implications for the overall security situation in the country.
