The military’s media wing on Wednesday said that security forces were “falsely implicated” in an incident that took place in Mir Ali tehsil of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s North Waziristan district, killing four children.

“Initial findings have established that this heinous act has been orchestrated and executed by Indian-sponsored Fitna Al Khwarij,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement, using the term the state uses to refer to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The statement comes after locals staged a protest in Mir Ali’s Hurmuz village on Monday against the killing of four children and a woman, allegedly by a drone strike. A day earlier, police said talks with local elders on the matter were underway.

“Following a tragic incident on May 19, 2025, in the general area of Mir Ali, North Waziristan district, which regrettably resulted in civilian casualties, unfounded and misleading allegations have been circulated by certain quarters, falsely implicating Pakistan’s security forces,” the ISPR statement said.

“These claims are entirely baseless and are part of a coordinated disinformation campaign aimed at discrediting the security forces’ steadfast efforts in the ongoing counterterrorism operations.”

It said that a “comprehensive investigation was promptly initiated” in response to the accusations.

“It is evident that these elements — acting at the behest of their Indian masters — continue to exploit civilian areas and vulnerable populations as shields to conduct their reprehensible acts of terrorism. Such tactics aim to unsuccessfully sow discord between the local population and the security forces, who together remain resolute to uproot the menace of terrorism.”

It further said that security forces reaffirmed “their commitment to ensuring that the perpetrators of this inhuman act are brought to justice.”

Meanwhile, the protest against the alleged drone strike continued for a second day today.

Allama Iqbal Dawar, a protest organiser and a local PTI leader, told Dawn.com that negotiations with the local administration were still ongoing after the first day and both sides had not yet reached an agreement.

The organisers said that they would take the protest to Islamabad if their demands were not accepted.

Tribal elders also decided to visit villages in the area to seek support for the possible Islamabad demonstration.

Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities over the past year, especially in KP and Balochistan, TTP ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022.

On Monday, the ISPR said 12 terrorists of “Indian proxy” outfits were killed by security forces while two personnel were martyred in separate engagements in KP and Balochistan.

Earlier this month, seven soldiers were martyred in a blast from an improvised explosive device planted by the “Indian proxy” terrorist group Balochistan Liberation Army in Kacchi district.

Armed operations and air strikes have become routine in the North Waziristan district amid claims of residents that civilians are targeted in the attacks.

About several such incidents, the local population and human rights organisations have argued that these operations lack transparency and are outside the bounds of due legal process.

In March, at least 11 people were killed in Mardan in what locals insisted was a drone strike, but officials said was an operation carried out against militants. According to locals, the deceased were civilians, including women and children, working as shepherds.

An alleged drone attack in the Konrai Raghzai area of Upper South Waziristan district killed one person and injured three others in September last year. While the local sources confirmed the drone attack, there was no official confirmation of the drone strike.