PESHAWAR: Two militants, including a key commander, were killed and two others were arrested, while a police officer em­­b­raced martyrdom in a joint operation carried out by se­­curity forces and Co­­un­ter Terrorism Depart­m­ent (CTD) of the police in district Tank, the police said.

According to an official statement issued by the CTD on Friday, the militants were involved in attacks on the CTD in Dera Ismail Khan and Tank districts, adding that the militants were also involved in kidnapping for ransom, IED explosions, and firing on security forces’ check-posts.

“The killed militants including key militant commander Faridullah alias Prhakay and Amjad alias Babraye, were members of the banned Teh­reek-i-Taliban Pakistan’s Bitthani group,” the statement read.

Earlier, during a news conference in the provincial capital on Friday, SSP CTD Najm­­ul Hasnain informed media persons that the militants were wan­ted in 23 different cases.

He added that other members of the militants’ group managed to escape, but a search operation was underway to arrest them.

“We have made some developments in probing the Police Station Chaudhwan and Darband attacks in Dera Ismail Khan,” Mr Hasnain said, adding that the department has identified six militants who were hiding in the hills.

Published in Dawn, February 17th, 2024