Peshawar, Jul 26 (PTI) Three wanted operatives of a banned terror outfit were killed in a joint operation by the Counter Terrorism Department and local police in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northwest Pakistan, officials said Saturday.
The operation, carried out in the Barikot area of Swat district of the province on Friday, targetted key members of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) identified as part of the Fitna al-Khawarij network, a statement from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police said.
"The terrorists were involved in attacks on security forces, assassinations of police personnel, and extortion cases," the police said, adding that the network was funded externally.
Malakand Regional Police Officer Sher Akbar Khan termed the operation a significant blow to the operational wing of Fitna al-Khawarij in Swat and nearby regions. “We are determined to uproot Fitna al-Khawarij,” he said.
Swat District Police Officer Muhammad Umar Khan said search and strike operations against militants would continue while Inspector General of KP Police Zulfiqar Hameed said, “Operations against terrorists will be further intensified to restore lasting peace in the province.”
The three terrorists killed were wanted in multiple terror-related cases and one of them even carried a bounty of Rs 2 million.
In separate incidents on Friday, a police official was killed in Karak district, while security forces foiled a late-night terrorist assault on a police station in Bannu’s Basyakhel area.
Earlier this month, three suspected TTP militants from the Tipu Gul group were gunned down in a joint CTD-police operation in Lakki Marwat. It came days after the killing of a peace committee leader and two of his aides in the same district.
Another encounter in Lakki Marwat’s Kot Kashmir area left three terrorists dead, but also resulted in the death of a police officer.
Pakistan has seen a sharp rise in terrorist activity, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces since the TTP called off its ceasefire with the government in November 2022.
According to a Counter Terrorism Department report, 670 terror incidents have been recorded so far in 2024, with 212 militants killed in counter-terror operations in the province.