Security forces on Wednesday killed 13 terrorists in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) carried out in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district, the military’s media wing said in a statement.

According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), security forces conducted the operation in the Daraban area, upon the reported presence of terrorists “belonging to Indian proxy, Fitna al Khwarij”.

The state uses the term Fitna al Khwarij to refer to terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). It has also designated Balochistan-based groups as Fitna al Hindustan to highlight India’s alleged role in terrorism and destabilisation across Pakistan.

“During the conduct of [the] operation, [our] own troops effectively engaged the khwarij location and [as a result], 13 Indian sponsored khwarij were sent to hell,” the statement read.

The ISPR added that weapons and ammunition were recovered from the dead terrorists, who were involved in terrorist activity in the area.

The statement added that these terrorists were involved in “facilitation [of] a suicide bombing attack in Daraban in December 2023, [the] abduction and target killing of government officials and innocent civilians”.

“[A] sanitisation operation is being conducted to eliminate any other Indian sponsored kharji found in the area, as the security forces of Pakistan are determined to wipe out the menace of Indian sponsored terrorism from the country,” the statement concluded.

On September 21, security personnel launched an IBO in the same district, where they killed seven terrorists, including three “Afghan nationals”. In a statement, the ISPR said that the operation was carried out in the Kulachi area upon the presence of “khawarij”.

“During the conduct of [the] operation, own troops effectively engaged the khwarij location and [as a result], seven Indian sponsored khwarij, including three Afghan National khwarij and two suicide bombers, were sent to hell,” the ISPR said.

The statement added that Pakistan expects the interim Afghan government, run by the Afghan Taliban, to uphold its responsibilities and deny the use of its soil to carry out acts of terror.

Pakistan has lately been witnessing an uptick in terrorist activities, mainly in KP and Balochistan. In November 2022, the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan, after breaking a ceasefire deal with the government, had vowed to escalate attacks against the security forces, the police, and other law enforcement agencies’ personnel.