By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Security forces killed 23 militants in a series of intelligence-based operations conducted over the past 48 hours in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the military said Thursday.
The Inter-Services Public Relations, the armed forces’ media wing, said the operations took place in the areas of Datta Khel, Spinwam and Bannu. In a statement, the ISPR reported that troops engaged multiple militant positions. “Following intense and fierce exchanges of fire, twenty three more khwarij belonging to Indian-sponsored Fitna-al-Khwarij” were killed, it said. Pakistani authorities use the term “khwarij,” or Fitna al-Khawarij, to refer to fighters affiliated with the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan; they apply a parallel label, Fitna al-Hindustan, to Balochistan-based militant networks.
Among those killed was a ringleader identified by the military as Jan Meer, also known as Toor Saqib. The ISPR said his death would deliver “a significant blow to the khwarij networks operating in these areas.” Meer had long been wanted by security forces. The government had placed a bounty on him because of his active involvement in numerous terrorist activities, including the killing of security personnel and innocent civilians.
During the operations, security forces discovered and destroyed a series of complex underground tunnels and bunkers used by the militants. Weapons, ammunition and a large cache of explosives, including improvised explosive devices, were recovered from the sites. “Sanitisation operations continue to eliminate holed up khwarij from these areas,” the ISPR said, “as the relentless counter-terrorism campaign under vision ‘Azm-e-Istehkam’ — as approved by the Federal Apex Committee on National Action Plan — by security forces and law enforcement agencies of Pakistan will continue at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country.”
Meanwhile, Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistan’s chief of defense forces and chief of the army staff, said on Thursday that the country’s campaign against terrorism would press forward with “full national resolve” until “enduring peace and stability” are secured nationwide.
Munir delivered the pledge during an investiture ceremony at General Headquarters in Rawalpindi, where he presented military awards to officers, soldiers and the families of those killed in operations. The event underscored both the armed forces’ operational achievements and the human cost of the long-running fight. The ISPR, in a statement released after the ceremony, said Munir served as chief guest and personally conferred the honors. The awards recognized “exceptional gallantry in operations and distinguished services rendered to the nation.” They included 50 Sitara-i-Imtiaz (Military) decorations and 12 Tamgha-i-Basalat medals. Posthumous awards were received by the families of the “shuhada,” or martyrs.
“Shuhada and Ghazis remain the enduring pride of the nation,” Munir said, according to the military statement. “Their honour and sacrifice are a sacred trust for every Pakistani. Peace and security of our motherland are owed to their supreme sacrifices and unwavering devotion to duty.”
The army chief also paid tribute to the families of the fallen, describing their “resilience, dignity and steadfastness” as “unparalleled sacrifices” and an “unwavering commitment to the homeland.” He expressed “profound admiration” for their bearing, the statement said. Munir went on to praise the broader efforts of Pakistan’s armed forces and law enforcement agencies, lauding their “operational preparedness and unwavering resolve” and their “sustained efforts against terrorists.” He repeated his central message: the fight against terrorism “will continue with full national resolve until enduring peace and stability are achieved across the country.”
The latest operations come amid a documented rise in militant violence. The Islamabad-based Pak Institute for Peace Studies reported that terrorist attacks across Pakistan increased by 34 percent in 2025, while terrorism-related fatalities rose by 21 percent year-over-year. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Centre for Research and Security Studies recorded fatalities climbing from 1,620 in 2024 to 2,331 last year.
Pakistani officials have repeatedly called on the Taliban administration in Afghanistan to dismantle terrorist sanctuaries on Afghan soil, particularly those linked to the TTP, but those appeals have gone unheeded. The resurgence of militancy, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, where attacks have often targeted security personnel and law enforcement agencies, has prompted intensified counter-terrorism operations by the state.
On Tuesday, the military said security forces killed 22 India-sponsored militants in North Waziristan. Last month, security forces killed 22 militants in a joint intelligence-based operation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Khyber District.
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