https://arab.news/8htex
- Army conducts frequent operations against militants it claims launch attacks from safe havens in Afghanistan
- Militants have intensified attacks on army and its bases since breaking ceasefire with government in late 2022
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Army said on Friday a “high-value target” was among two militants killed in an intelligence-based operation in the Lower Dir district of the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
In recent months, the military has launched frequent operations in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan. The army’s target in the area are militants it says launch attacks inside Pakistan and against the army using safe havens in Afghanistan, a charge Kabul denies.
Groups like the Pakistani Taliban, commonly known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), have been waging a war against the Pakistani state for nearly two decades in a bid to overthrow the government and replace it with what they consider an Islamic system of governance.
“During the conduct of operation, own troops surrounded and effectively engaged the khwarij (terrorist) location and after an intense fire exchange, two khwarij including high value target Kharji Hafeezullah alias Kochwan were sent to hell,” the military said of the latest operation.
The army said Hafeezullah was involved in numerous militant activities targeting security forces and civilians and was wanted by law enforcement agencies, with a $35,714 (Rs10 million) bounty placed on his head by the government.
Earlier this week, the army said it had killed another “highly wanted” militant among nine others also in an intelligence-based operation in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Militants have intensified their attacks since revoking a ceasefire with the government in late 2022, with recent months witnessing significant strikes targeting the military and its bases.