QUETTA: Security forces claimed to have killed three suspected militants, including the Balochistan chief of the banned Jaish-ul-Islam (JI) militant group, Mehmood Rind, during a targeted operation conducted in Quetta's Eastern Bypass area on late Monday night.

A well-placed security officer who declined to be named since he was not authorised to speak to media told DawnNews that security forces launched an operation against militants of the proscribed group in the outskirts of Quetta on Monday evening.

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Two security men were also wounded during the operation.

Blasts were also heard in Quetta's Eastern Bypass area during the targeted operation.

The personnel of an intelligence agency backed by personnel of frontier corps faced tough resistance by the militants during the operation, he said.

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"There was an intense exchange of fire," the officer said.

The wounded security personnel were shifted to combined military hospital (CMH) for medical treatment.

The bodies of the suspected militants were shifted to civil hospital Quetta for postmortem.

Meanwhile senior security and police officers also reached the spot and hospital to monitor the situation.

The security officer stated that JI Balochistan Chief was involved in a series of targeted killings and bomb explosions in Quetta.

This action has come after Quetta once again saw a sharp rise in acts of targeted killings and bomb explosions.

Police and Frontier Corps also launched a crack-down against militants in different areas of Quetta and picked up a number of suspects in the wee hours of Tuesday.

Police spokesman told Dawn.com that 39 suspects were taken into custody in Deba, Joint Road and other areas of the city.