RAWALPINDI: Security forces have dealt a major blow to Indian-backed Fitna al-Khawarij, killing 43 terrorists in a series of intelligence-based operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Mir Ali and Orakzai districts over the past 48 hours, the military’s media wing said on Friday.
According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), troops conducted a series of intelligence-based operations targeting multiple Khawarij hideouts as part of efforts to dismantle terrorist networks in the province.
During the operations, security forces engaged several militant positions in intense exchanges of fire, killing 35 militants in Mir Ali and another eight in Orakzai, the statement said.
The ISPR identified the terrorists as members of Indian-sponsored Fitna-al-Khawarij, adding that the operations had dealt a significant blow to militant networks operating in the two areas.
Meanwhile, security forces also recovered a large cache of weapons, ammunition and explosives during subsequent sanitisation operations.
The recovered material included locally manufactured explosives and improvised explosive devices (IEDs), which the military said militants intended to use in terrorist activities.
The recovery, according to the ISPR, helped thwart the militants’ plans to carry out attacks using the seized material.
Security forces have launched further sanitisation operations to track down militants believed to be hiding in the affected areas.
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The military said counterterrorism operations would continue under the national security vision of “Azm-e-Istehkam”, approved by the Federal Apex Committee under the National Action Plan.
It added that security forces and law enforcement agencies remained committed to eliminating foreign-sponsored terrorism across the country.
