By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Security forces killed 32 suspected militants in coordinated operations across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan over the past 24 hours, the military’s media wing said on Wednesday, as a separate operation against militants in Swat claimed the life of a police constable.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the operations were carried out in continuation of the security establishment’s campaign against the “terrorists nexus of India-sponsored Fitna-al-Khawarij and Fitna-al-Hindustan” — the state’s designations for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Balochistan-based separatist groups respectively, both of which Islamabad accuses New Delhi of sponsoring.
In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Khyber district, 24 militants belonging to Fitna-al-Khawarij were killed on July 28 and 29 during what ISPR described as multiple “intelligence-based area sanitisation and targeted operations”. A further eight militants, belonged to Fitna-al-Hindustan, were killed following an “intense engagement” during intelligence-based operations in Balochistan’s Nushki district.
Weapons, ammunition and improvised explosive devices were recovered and destroyed during the raids, the military said, adding that sanitisation operations were continuing in the affected areas to root out any remaining militants.
“Relentless counter-terrorism campaign under the vision ‘Azm-i-Istehkam’ 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,” the ISPR statement said, referring to the strategy endorsed by the Federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi praised the security forces for their “bravery and professional capabilities”, according to a series of posts on the interior ministry’s official X account. “Security forces eliminated 32 terrorists in a decisive manner, thereby thwarting their nefarious designs,” the ministry said, adding that “the nation stands shoulder to shoulder with the security forces for the complete eradication of the cancer of Fitna-al-Hindustan”. The ministry quoted Naqvi as saying that “the terrorists of Fitna al-Hindustan will find no place to hide anywhere”.
Constable martyred in Swat operation
Separately, an operation against militants in Swat’s Matta tehsil has left an Elite Force constable dead and four militants killed, according to police and security sources.
Swat police spokesperson Nasir Iqbal Karimi said Constable Gulfam Khan was killed on Tuesday night while confronting militants during the operation, which was continuing on Wednesday and involved the Pakistan Army alongside police and the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD).
Security sources said police had secured a strategically important position in the Rashid Sar area of Matta, though four militants remained holed up inside a nearby house, where they were reportedly using the occupants as human shields. The sources said the operation would continue until the area was fully cleared.
Funeral prayers for Constable Khan were held at Police Lines in Swat, attended by the Malakand commissioner, the Regional Police Officer, the Swat District Police Officer, army and police personnel, and members of civil society. A police contingent presented a guard of honour in recognition of his sacrifice. “Police martyrs are the nation’s true heroes, and their sacrifices will always be remembered,” the Malakand RPO said.
There have been persistent reports over recent months of a militant presence in Swat’s Kabal and Matta tehsils, as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa continues to grapple with a resurgence of violence.
Provinces under sustained pressure
Wednesday’s operations come amid a marked deterioration in the security climate across both provinces. Earlier this month, security forces launched Operation Shaban in Balochistan after gunmen stormed a police post at the Mangi Dam pumping station in Ziarat on July 6, killing 27 officers in an attack that prompted a fierce retaliatory response. Days later, Operation Al-Azm was launched in the province following a shooting on a Karachi-bound coach travelling from Quetta that left three people dead and five injured.
In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, militants attempted to storm a joint police checkpost in Tank on July 24. ISPR said the attempt was “swiftly and decisively foiled”, with 12 militants killed in the exchange.
Pakistan has seen a marked rise in militant activity in both provinces since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021. Islamabad has repeatedly pressed the Taliban government to act against groups operating from Afghan soil, and in February launched Operation Ghazab lil-Haq in response to what it described as cross-border militant attacks originating in Afghanistan.
A monthly assessment published in early June by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) found that Pakistan’s security situation deteriorated sharply in May after two consecutive months of improvement, driven largely by escalating violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Balochistan was the worst-affected province, the report found, recording 71 attacks during the month compared with 34 in April — a rise of 109 per cent. The report also noted a sharp increase in kidnappings, with 52 of the 54 abductions recorded nationwide in May occurring in Balochistan alone, a trend it said reflected the growing reach and confidence of militant groups operating in the province.
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