RAWALPINDI: The military’s media wing said on Friday that 24 militants were killed in intelligence-based operations conducted in Bannu district over the past 24 hours, following a spike in attacks on police and a vehicle-borne suicide bombing in the area.
In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said security forces had launched the operations after “Fitna al-Khwarij” — the term the military uses for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — targeted law enforcement personnel and civilians in the district. ISPR alleges the group operates as an Indian proxy, a charge New Delhi has consistently denied.
According to the statement, the 24 slain militants were killed during “intense exchanges of fire” in Bannu and its adjoining areas.
Weapons and ammunition were recovered from the scene, ISPR said, adding that those killed had been involved in “numerous terrorist activities,” including the killing of civilians.
The statement said further operations would continue in the area to apprehend those responsible for the attacks, describing the campaign as part of the broader counter-terrorism drive under the “Azm-e-Istehkam” framework, which was approved by the federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan.
“[Security forces] will continue at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country,” the ISPR statement said.
