KHYBER / PESHAWAR: Five military personnel were martyred and 17 terrorists killed in two separate incidents in the Khyber and Tank districts, the military said on Monday, a day after security forces claimed to have neutralised six terrorists in an intelligence-based operation in the Hassankhel area, near Peshawar.

Sources said six soldiers were also injured in the Khyber operation. However, Inter-Services Public Rela­tions (ISPR), the media wing of the armed forces, did not confirm this.

In a statement, the ISPR said that five soldiers embraced martyrdom, while seven terrorists were killed and two others were wounded in an engagement in the Bagh area of Khyber district on Sunday. The martyred soldiers were identified as Naik Moham­mad Ashfaq Butt, 32, a resident of district Kahtua; Lance Naik Syed Danish Afkar, 30, Poonch; Sepoy Taimoor Malik, 32, Layyah; Sepoy Nadir Sageer, 22, Bagh; and Sepoy Mohammad Yasin, 23, Khushab.

“A large quantity of weapons, amm­u­nition and explosives was also recovered from the terrorists killed in the shooting. They had been actively involved in numerous terrorist activities against the security forces and innocent civilians,” the statement said.

ISPR says 17 terrorists killed in Tank, Khyber; huge cache of arms, ammunition, explosive material seized

It said that sanitisation operations were being carried out in the area. “Security forces are determined to wipe out the menace of terrorism from the country and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve,” the ISPR said.

The soldiers, according to security sources, were martyred in a terrorist attack on a security check-post in the Bagh locality of the remote Tirah area of the district early on Monday. Six soldiers were also injured in the incident, sources said.

In another operation on Monday, conducted in the Tank district, ISPR said that security forces had effectively engaged terrorists, killing 10 of them.

Funerals

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen Asim Munir, Peshawar Corps Comm­ander Lt Gen Omar Bukhari and a large number of military and civil officials attended the funeral of the martyred soldiers in Peshawar garrison.

After the funeral, the COAS visited CMH, Peshawar to inquire after the health of troops injured during the operation.

He appreciated the high morale of the troops and reaffirmed the resolve of the nation to fight the terrorism with full vigour and spirit.

The martyrs would be laid to rest with full military honours in their respective native towns, according to the military’s media wing.

KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, in a statement, offer­­ed condolences to the families of martyred soldiers in Khyber.

The entire nation was proud of the sacrifices of the security forces and these sacrifices would not go in vain, Mr Gandapur added.

Published in Dawn, May 28th, 2024