By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces killed at least eight militants in an intelligence-based operation in a remote area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province on Friday, part of a broader campaign that has eliminated more than 100 insurgents in recent days, according to military sources and state media.
The strikes came as a 48-hour cease-fire with Afghanistan neared its end, following intense border clashes that have strained relations between the two neighbors. The operation unfolded in the Sultankhel area of Lakki Marwat District, near the border with Punjab Province, where forces targeted a terrorist hideout in a forested region between Kaichi Kamar and Sultankhel.
Officials said the site was struck using an unmanned drone, leading to a gunbattle in which eight militants were killed. Security personnel then destroyed the hideouts and seized a large quantity of arms, ammunition and explosives. A sanitization sweep followed to clear any remaining threats. The action was one of several in recent days aimed at curbing militant activity. Pakistani forces have killed at least 108 terrorists affiliated with the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and other groups over the past four days, security sources said. Around 50 were eliminated in a single operation the previous day, as troops foiled an infiltration attempt in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa amid ongoing border tensions.
In a separate incident on Friday, a TTP commander, Tariq Kochi, from Toi Khula tehsil in Lower South Waziristan, was killed by unidentified gunmen near the border with Balochistan Province. The ambush occurred in the Tesh mountain range, where Kochi and other militants were targeted. Police officials described Kochi as having been involved for the past year in multiple attacks, shootings and targeted killings against security forces, police and civilians in the area.
Security forces also thwarted a potential attack in Bajaur District, destroying a large cache of explosives loaded into a non-customs-paid vehicle in the Lowi Mamund tehsil. The incident took place around 11:15 am in the Thangai area, where personnel fired on the suspected vehicle, disabling it. “The explosives-laden vehicle was disabled by firing at it,” said Waqas Rafique, the district police officer, adding that no loss of life was reported. An investigation is underway to determine who was behind the failed sabotage.
The operations coincided with a deadly suicide attack near the Afghan border that killed six soldiers and six militants, underscoring the volatility along the frontier. The assault targeted the Khadi fort, a military camp in North Waziristan District, where one militant rammed an explosives-laden car into the facility, sparking an intense gunbattle. “Security forces swiftly responded, repelling the attack and engaging the terrorists in a fierce battle,” said Meraj Khan, an officer at the Mir Ali police control room. “Sadly, six security personnel were martyred and over a dozen others sustained injuries.” He added: “Security forces managed to kill six terrorists during the confrontation.” The area was cordoned off, and a clearance operation was initiated. Pakistan’s army did not immediately comment.
Pakistani officials have long accused the Taliban government in Kabul of allowing militants to use Afghan soil as a base for attacks on Pakistan — a charge Kabul denies. The clashes began on Oct. 11, when Taliban forces, in collaboration with affiliated terror groups, launched an unprovoked attack on several Pakistani army posts. In response, Pakistan struck multiple Taliban positions along the border, killing over 200 Afghan Taliban and affiliated terrorists, while 23 Pakistani soldiers died in the fighting.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday that his country had “retaliated” after losing patience with a series of militant attacks, but expressed readiness to hold talks to resolve the conflict. The fighting, the worst between the two countries in decades, prompted mediation efforts by Saudi Arabia and Qatar. It culminated in precision strikes by Pakistani forces deep inside Afghanistan on Thursday, targeting areas in Kandahar Province and near Kabul. Soon after, the Afghan Taliban requested a temporary cease-fire, which Pakistan accepted.
Militant violence has been a persistent irritant in Pakistan-Afghanistan relations since the Taliban regained power in Kabul in 2021 following the withdrawal of United States-led forces. Islamabad has repeatedly demanded that the Afghan authorities rein in insurgents operating from havens across the border, but the Taliban regime has instead deployed terrorists in aggression against Pakistan.
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