As many as 23 terrorists were killed during the conduct of separate operations in Balochistan, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Saturday.
The military’s media wing said that 18 Frontier Corps (FC) soldiers embraced martyrdom during the Mangocher operation last night, when terrorists had attempted to establish roadblocks in the general area of Mangocher.
At the behest of inimical and hostile forces, the ISPR said, this cowardly act of terrorism was aimed at disrupting the peaceful environment of the province by targeting mainly innocent civilians.
In response, security forces and law enforcement agencies were immediately mobilised, who successfully thwarted the evil design of terrorists and sent 12 terrorists to hell, ensuring the security and protection of the local populace, it said.
“However, during the conduct of operations, eighteen brave sons of [the] soil, having fought gallantly, made the ultimate sacrifice and embraced shahadat.”
In a follow-up sanitisation operation in Harnai on Saturday, added the military’s media wing, 11 terrorists were gunned down, bringing the total number of killed militants to 23.
The sanitisation operations would continue until perpetrators and facilitators of the heinous and cowardly act are brought to justice, the ISPR said.
The security forces, it said, remain determined to thwart attempts at sabotaging peace, stability, and progress of Balochistan and such “sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve”.
President Asif Ali Zardari expressed his deep grief and sorrow over the martyrdom of 18 security personnel. The president paid tribute to the martyred personnel and prayed for their high ranks and for the bereaved families to bear the losses with fortitude, read the press release issued by the President Secretariat’s Press Wing.
He also observed that terrorist elements wanted to disrupt the peace of Balochistan and reiterated that security forces would continue their operations to eliminate enemies of the country.
The incident comes less than a day after separate anti-terrorist operations by the security forces in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
At least 10 terrorists in five operations in different areas of KP, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Friday.
The operations are part of a sustained effort as the country witnessed a surge in violent attacks since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021, particularly in the bordering provinces of KP and Balochistan.
The year 2024 turned out to be the deadliest for Pakistan’s civil and military security forces in a decade with at least 685 fatalities and 444 terror attacks, according to “CRSS Annual Security Report 2024” issued by Centre for Security and Strategic Studies.
