• Army officer, DPO and SHO injured in Hangu
• Two explosive-laden quadcopters down in Bannu
• Two ‘proclaimed offenders’ killed in Kohat

KOHAT/MALAKAND/LAK­KI MARWAT: Eleven militants were killed, five injured and seven arrested during joint operations conducted in Hangu and Malakand districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Saturday.

A senior army officer and two police officials were also wounded during the clash.

In a separate incident, Bannu police claimed to have shot down two explosive-laden quadcopters intended to target police stations.

According to Kohat Regional Police Officer (RPO) Abbas Majeed Marwat, the operation in Hangu was launched based on intelligence regar­­ding the presence of terrorists in the Zargari and Shena Wari areas. He said law enforcement agencies engaged militants belonging to the Kazim and Abubakr groups and exchanged intense fire with them.

During the operation, three senior officers — Hangu DPO Khalid Khan, Doaba police station SHO Nabi Khan and a lieutenant colonel — sustained injuries. Nine terrorists were killed, while five others were injured in the exchange of fire.

The injured officers were shifted to CMH Kohat. DPO Khalid Khan underwent surgery, during which eight splinters were removed from his body. The lieutenant colonel and the SHO were discharged after initial treatment. The RPO confirmed that DPO Khalid Khan was in stable condition.

In Malakand, two militants were killed and seven others arrested during a joint operation conducted by the army, Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) and the Elite Force. Officials said the action was taken on reports about the presence of a large number of terrorists in the area.

Quadcopters destroyed

A Bannu police official said that two explosive-laden quadcopters were intercepted and destroyed midair before reaching their targets. He claimed the intended targets were the Miryan police station — which has previously come under aerial attacks — and the CTD police station.

“Both quadcopters were intercepted midair and destroyed,” the official said, adding that timely and effective action prevented any damage or casualties.

He said that while the Miryan police station had been targeted multiple times in recent weeks by explosive-laden drones, it was the first such attempt against the CTD police station in Bannu.

Separately, two alleged proclaimed offenders were killed by Kohat police on Bannu Road on Saturday.

Police said two motorcyclists were stopped at a checkpoint but one opened fire. In retaliation, police shot both men dead. The deceased were identified as Shazeb and Khan Muhammad.

Abdul Sami Paracha in Kohat, Ghulam Mursalin Marwat in Lakki Marwat and Gohar Ali Gohar in Malakand contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2025