PESHAWAR: Jet fighters carried out airstrikes on suspected militant hideouts destroying seven of them while 13 militants were also killed on Tuesday during the Zarb-i-Azb operation in the North Waziristan tribal region.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) confirmed that the airstrikes were carried out early morning in the Degan area of North Waziristan.

Army sources further claimed that seven militant hideouts were destroyed and 13 militants, including foreigners, were killed in airstrikes in Degan.

The death toll, however, could not be independently verified.

The strikes came a day after Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif visited the troops in North Waziristan.

Related: No timeframe for completion of Zarb-i-Azb: Asif

The army chief during his visit emphasised that the forces eliminate all local and foreign terrorists and their sanctuaries. He had also commended the entire chain of command for its "determined effort in planning, preparation, mobilisation and execution of the operation”.

So far more than 400 suspected militants, mostly foreigners, have been killed during the operation while at least 19 IED-making factories have also been unearthed by security forces in parts of Miramshah, the main town in North Waziristan.

Take a look: Zarb-i-Azb: More IED factories, explosives recovered in NWA

Moreover, Fata Disaster Management Authority (FDMA) said today that the number of internally displaced persons had almost reached 0.8 million (800,000) in the wake of the Zarb-i-Azb operation.