LANDI KOTAL, Dec 25: Two militants were killed and four persons, including two security men, received injuries in separate incidents in Khyber Agency on Tuesday, sources said.

They said that a militant was killed and another injured in a firing incident in Loe Shalman area of Landi Kotal.

Militants holed up in Ranay Parchaw, a border village of Afghanistan across the Kabul River near Torkham, wanted to hire some boats to cross the river into Pakistan, sources said.

The boat owners refused to lend them boats as security forces had imposed a ban on ferry service owing to movements of militants, they said. The refusal by the boat owners infuriated the militants, who started firing at them from across the border.

In retaliatory firing by the boat owners from Shalman Khula village, one militant was killed and another received injuries, sources said.

The security forces, stationed at a nearby hilltop, also reached the spot and took positions along the riverside to stop militants from crossing over into Pakistan.

In another incident, two security personnel were injured in a roadside blast in Bara.

Officials said that a convoy of security forces was on its way to Peshawar from Jansi Fort. An improvised explosive device, planted along the road, went off when the convoy reached Bachi Nihar in Sipah area, they added.

The blast injured lance naik Shaman Gul and naik Noaman. Their vehicle was also damaged badly in the blast.

Both the injured security men were shifted to a hospital in Peshawar. Security forces cordoned off the area and conducted a search operation but no arrests were made.

In Tirah, an activist of banned militant group Ansarul Islam killed his colleague Farooq Khan and injured another.

The members of the group were posted at a bunker situated on a hilltop near the border of Orakzai Agency. Reason behind the firing incident could not be immediately known. The killer managed to escape after the incident, sources said.

Opinion

Editorial

Weathering the storm
Updated 29 Apr, 2024

Weathering the storm

Let 2024 be the year when we all proactively ensure that our communities are safeguarded and that the future is secure against the inevitable next storm.
Afghan repatriation
29 Apr, 2024

Afghan repatriation

COMPARED to the roughshod manner in which the caretaker set-up dealt with the issue, the elected government seems a...
Trying harder
29 Apr, 2024

Trying harder

IT is a relief that Pakistan managed to salvage some pride. Pakistan had taken the lead, then fell behind before...
Return to the helm
Updated 28 Apr, 2024

Return to the helm

With Nawaz Sharif as PML-N president, will we see more grievances being aired?
Unvaxxed & vulnerable
Updated 28 Apr, 2024

Unvaxxed & vulnerable

Even deadly mosquito-borne illnesses like dengue and malaria have vaccines, but they are virtually unheard of in Pakistan.
Gaza’s hell
Updated 28 Apr, 2024

Gaza’s hell

Perhaps Western ‘statesmen’ may moderate their policies if a significant percentage of voters punish them at the ballot box.