LAKKI MARWAT: Two terrorists were killed in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lakki Marwat district, police said.

Qudratullah Khan, the spokesperson for the district police officer in Lakki Marwat, said in a statement that the operation was jointly conducted by police and Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) personnel after receiving “credible information about the presence of Fitna-al-Khawarij terrorists in the mountainous area within the limits of the Lakki City police station”.

The state uses the term Fitna-al-Khawarij to refer to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its affiliates.

Khan said, “A fierce gunfight erupted when the law enforcers surrounded the terrorists’ hideout,” adding that two terrorists were killed during the exchange of fire.

He said one of the slain terrorists was identified as Mubashir, who was wanted by the CTD in various terrorism-related cases, including bomb blasts. The second individual was yet to be identified.

KP’s Inspector General of Police Zulfiqar Hameed appreciated the Lakki Marwat police and CTD personnel for conducting a “successful and result-oriented” operation. He added that the police were “fully determined to completely root out the scourge of terrorism”.

KP, including Lakki Marwat, has been facing security challenges, and according to a monthly assessment by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies tracking violence and terrorism, the province, excluding the merged districts, recorded 154 deaths in July, compared with 75 in June, representing an increase of 105pc. The number of people injured rose from 60 to 98.

Security personnel deaths in mainland KP increased from 12 to 38, while terrorist deaths rose by 192pc, from 37 to 108. Civilian deaths, however, declined by 73pc, falling from 26 in June to seven in July. One member of a peace committee was also killed in the province.

Data showed a slight decline in overall deaths in the merged districts of KP, formerly known as Fata. The region recorded 79 deaths in July, compared with 85 in June.

The number of people injured in the merged districts declined by 37pc, from 60 to 38. Security personnel deaths increased from six to 11, while terrorist deaths declined by 24pc, from 72 to 55. Civilian deaths rose by 86pc, increasing from seven to 13.