PESHAWAR: As Pakis­tan and Afghanistan continue talks on curbing cross-border terrorism, the army on Sunday said it foiled at least two infiltration attempts by Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorists, killing 25 militants in separate engagements in Kurram and North Waziristan districts.

At least five soldiers embraced martyrdom in the exchange of fire, acco­rding to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

The military’s media wing detailed how, on Oct 24 and 25, “movements of two large groups of khwarij” — the state’s term for the banned TTP — were detected in Ghaki, Kurram and Spinwam, North Waziristan.

The intruders were effectively engaged, and “as a result of precise and skilful engagements”, 15 terrorists, including “four suicide bombers” were gunned down in Waziristan and 10 were killed in Ghaki, Kurram, ISPR said.

The statement added that a large number of weapons, ammunition, and explosives were also recovered.

During the intense fire exch­anges, five soldiers “paid the ultimate sacrifice” and embraced martyrdom, the statement added.

The fallen soldiers included Havildar Manzoor Hussain (35, District Ghizar), Sepoy Nauman Ilyas Kiyani (23, District Poonch), Sepoy Muhammad Adil (24, District Kasur), Sepoy Shah Jehan (25, District Vehari), and Sepoy Ali Asghar (25, District Pakpattan).

ISPR noted that the infiltration attempts by the TTP were being carried out at a time when delegations of Pakistan and Afghanistan were engaged in talks in Turkiye, casting doubts on the intentions of the interim Afghanistan government reg­arding its intentions to rein in cross-border terrorism.

“Pakistan has consistently been asking the interim Afghan government to ensure effective border management on their side of the border and is expected to fulfil its obligations of [the] Doha agreement and deny the use of Afghan soil by Khwarij against Pakistan,” the army’s media wing added.

According to the statement, a sanitisation operation was being conducted to eliminate any other militants in the area. It said the counter-terrorism campaign under the vision ‘Azm-i-Istehkam’, “approved by the Federal Apex Committee on National Action Plan”, will continue at full pace to wipe out “the menace of foreign sponsored and supported terrorism from the country”.

Two IEDs disarmed

Separately, Doaba police in Hangu killed a militant allegedly involved in an attack on the Bagato checkpost in the district. Officials informed that the militant was chased by the Doaba police when he opened fire at the police team. In the retaliatory fire, the suspect was gunned down, while a policeman sustained injuries and was shifted to the Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar.

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Moreover, the bomb disposal squad (BDS) defused two improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Lakki Marwat and Bannu districts on Sunday. According to an official, a police party received information about suspicious bags placed near the Torwah Bridge area on the Bannu-Mianwali road. The BDS promptly arrived on the scene and disarmed the IED. Similarly, a roadside bomb was defused in Bannu’s Masoomabad Mamandkhel — an area in the limits of the Cantonment police station.

Meanwhile, a villager named Gul Rehman, who was kidnapped from Lakki Marwat two days ago, was killed by his captors for ‘spying’. A police official confirmed the killing of the villager and said that militants also shared a video of the incident on social media platforms.

Our correspondents in Kohat and Lakki Marwat also contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, October 27th, 2025