By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s military said on Saturday that it had foiled a terrorist attack on a training air base of the Pakistan Air Force, killing all nine assailants who tried to storm the facility in the early hours of the day.
The attack on the Mianwali Training Air Base, about 200 miles southwest of Islamabad, came a day after three separate assaults killed 21 people, including 17 soldiers, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces that border Afghanistan.
The military’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations, said in a statement that the attackers had tried to enter the base but were “neutralized” by the troops, who responded swiftly and effectively.
“On Nov 4, 2023, in the early hours of the day, Mianwali Training Air Base of Pakistan Air Force came under a failed terrorist attack which, Alhumdollilah, due to the swift and effective response by the troops, has been foiled and thwarted, ensuring the safety and security of personnel and assets,” the statement said.
In an afternoon update, the military confirmed that the “combing and clearance operation at PAF Training Airbase Mianwali has been concluded and all nine terrorists have been sent to hell.”
The ISPR added that the operation was launched to “eliminate any potential threat in the surrounding area following the cowardly and failed terrorist attack on the base this morning.”
The ISPR further said that no damage had been done to any of the PAF’s functional operational assets, while only some damage was done to three already phased-out non-operational aircraft during the attack. No casualties among the security forces or the air force personnel were reported.
“The prompt and professional conclusion of the operation serves as a stark reminder to all enemies of peace that Pakistan’s armed forces remain vigilant and are fully capable of defending the homeland from any threat,” the statement asserted.
The military vowed to remain committed to “eliminating the menace of terrorism from the country at all costs.” “A comprehensive joint clearance and combing operation is in the final stages to completely clear the area.”
The Tehreek-i-Jihad Pakistan (TJP), a newly emerged militant group that is an affiliate of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility in a statement to media.
Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar said the PAF has “once again proven its mettle by thwarting a cowardly terrorist attack in Mianwali”.
“Any attempt to undermine our security will meet with unwavering resistance. The nation stands with you and we salute your courage and resolve.”
Pakistan has seen a surge in militant violence, especially after the Pakistani Taliban ended their fragile ceasefire with the government in November 2022, with most of the attacks targeting the two provinces along the Afghan frontier.
Officials have repeatedly accused militants targeting their country of operating from neighboring Afghanistan and urged the Taliban government in Kabul to stop their territory from being used as a launchpad for such attacks.
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