Pakistan Army major martyred, five terrorists killed in KP IBO: ISPR

• Operation targeted Indian-backed terrorists: ISPR.
• PM Shehbaz lauds forces’ counterterrorism efforts.
• Forces recover weapons, ammunition from terrorists.
  

A Pakistan Army major was martyred while five terrorists were killed during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) conducted by security forces in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Bajaur district, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Monday.

In a statement, the military's media wing said that the IBO was conducted in Khar area on the reported presence of terrorists belonging to India proxy Fitna al-Khawarij.

During the operation, security forces killed five terrorists due to effective engagement, the ISPR stated.

"However, during the intense fire exchange, Major Adeel Zaman (age: 36 years, resident of Dera Ismail Khan District), a brave officer who was leading his troops from the front, having fought gallantly, rendered the ultimate sacrifice and embraced shahadat," it added.

The ISPR said that weapons and ammunition were recovered from the killed terrorists, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities against the security forces and law enforcement agencies, as well as the killing of innocent civilians.

Following the IBO, security forces conducted sanitisation operations to eliminate any other Indian sponsored terrorists found in the area.

The military's media wing vowed that the counterterrorism campaign under the "Azm e Istehkam" vision will "continue at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign sponsored and supported terrorism" from Pakistan.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif lauded the security forces on the operation and paid tribute to the martyred army official.

In a statement, PM Shehbaz expressed deep condolences to Major Zaman's family, saying that the entire nation stood with the armed forces in the fight against terrorism.

The premier also emphasised the government's resolve to eradicate all forms of terrorism from the country.

Pakistan has been grappling with rising terrorist incidents, particularly in the bordering provinces of KP and Balochistan, since 2021, when the Afghan Taliban regime came into power.

Pakistan has time and again called on the Afghan Taliban regime in Kabul to prevent its soil from being used by terrorists to target its forces and civilians.

However, Kabul has largely ignored such calls, keeping relations between the two neighbouring nations tense.

The cross-border terrorism, emanating from Afghanistan, also resulted in armed clashes between their forces in October.

The clashes began when Taliban fighters, backed by their affiliated militants, resorted to unprovoked firing along the border on October 12.

Pakistan Armed Forces retaliated swiftly, killing over 200 Taliban fighters and affiliated militants; however, as many as 23 Pakistani soldiers were martyred during the border clashes.

Security forces also conducted strikes inside Afghanistan, including in Kabul, destroying terrorists’ hideouts in the country.

Hostilities between forces of the two nations ceased after Pakistan accepted the Taliban regime's request for a temporary ceasefire on October 17.

Delegations from the two countries later met for talks mediated by Qatar in Doha, where they agreed on a ceasefire agreement.

Turkiye then hosted the second round of talks in Istanbul, which began on October 25.

However, the talks collapsed after four days over what Pakistani authorities described as the Taliban delegation's "illogical" arguments.