Three “wanted terrorists” were killed during a joint operation between the regional police and the Counter Terrorism Department in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu district on Wednesday night, police said.

The spokesperson for the Bannu police, Khanzala Quraishi, told Dawn.com, “The three terrorists, belonging to the Zarar group, had been eliminated in an intelligence-based joint operation conducted in the Bannu city outskirts at midnight.”

He said that the “terrorists were wanted for attacks on security forces and the target killing of police personnel”.

According to the spokesperson, the terrorists were identified and all of them were residents of Bannu.

“Three Kalashnikovs, magazines, pistols and handmade improvised explosive devices were recovered from their possession,” he said.

Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities over the past year, especially in KP and Balochistan, after the proscribed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022.

KP has seen an increasing trend of terrorism-related incidents, with a series of attacks across Peshawar, Karak, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, and Bajaur in the last few months.

Yesterday, two policemen were gunned down in a terrorist attack in Kulachi area of KP’s Dera Ismail Khan district, police said.

In early July, at least five people, including an assistant commissioner, were killed and 11 others injured in an explosion targeting a government vehicle in Bajaur.

Terrorist killed by police during DI Khan search operation

Meanwhile, a terrorist was killed and six others were injured during a search operation in Dera Ismail Khan area against assailants who attacked police personnel, according to the District Police Officer (DPO).

A statement issued by DI Khan DPO Sajjad Khan said that a search and strike operation was conducted in the Kulachi area under his supervision. It added that an exchange of fire took place between terrorists and police, leaving one terrorist dead and six others injured.

“The process of identifying the dead terrorist is underway,” the statement read. “A Kalashnikov with a magazine and ammunition was recovered from his possession.”

Separately, six people were killed as a result of a clash between two parties over personal enmity in the Panyala area of KP’s Dera Ismail Khan early on Thursday morning.

According to the DI Khan police spokesperson, Yaqoob Khan, “the two parties were close relatives, and the clash took place due to a long-standing family dispute.”

The bodies and the injured parties were transported to Panyala Hospital. The police have cordoned off the area and started an investigation, but no arrests have been made yet, he added.