PESHAWAR: Security forces have killed 23 terrorists in multiple intelligence-based operations conducted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement released on Thursday.

The military’s media wing said the operations were conducted over the last 48 hours in the areas of Dattakhel, Spinwam and Bannu.

“Over the last 48 hours, during the conduct of these series of operations, own troops effectively engaged multiple khwarij locations. Following intense and fierce exchanges of fire, twenty three more khwarij belonging to Indian-sponsored Fitna-al-Khwarij,” said the ISPR.

Fitna-al-Khwarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), while Fitna al Hindustanis a term designated by the state for terrorist organisations in Balochistan.

Among those killed was ring leader Jan Meer alias Toor Saqib, said the ISPR, adding that the ring leader’s death will give “a significant blow to the khwarij networks operating in these areas”.

Meer was wanted by security forces, and the government had announced a bounty on him due to his “active involvement in numerous terrorist activities, including the killing of security personnel and innocent civilians”.

The military said that during the sanitisation operations, a series of complex underground tunnels and bunkers used by terrorists were also discovered and destroyed by security forces.

Weapons, ammunition and a large cache of explosives, including improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were also recovered from the killed terrorists.

“Sanitisation operations continue to eliminate holed up khwarij from these areas, as relentless Counter Terrorism campaign under vision ‘Azm e Istehkam’ (as approved by Federal Apex Committee on National Action Plan) by security forces and law enforcement agencies of Pakistan will continue at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country,” said the ISPR.

Published in Dawn, May 22nd, 2026