 "A Pakistan army convoy patrols along a road in Hyderabad on February 6, 2024, ahead of Pakistan's general election. (Representative Photo, Credit: AFP)")
Pakistan security forces killed 17 gunmen linked to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Mullah Nazir group in a joint operation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Karak district, police officials said on Saturday (Sept 27).
Regional Police Chief Shehbaz Elahi said the operation, carried out on Friday, was based on intelligence about the presence of TTP and Mullah Nazir group militants. “The killed militants were Khwarij,” Elahi said, using a term Pakistani authorities often apply to the Taliban.
As troops closed in, the militants opened fire, sparking a clash in which all 17 were gunned down. Three officers were injured, and a cache of weapons and ammunition was recovered from the site.
The raid came two days after another intelligence-based operation in Dera Ismail Khan, where 13 Taliban fighters were killed in a similar encounter.
Pakistan has faced rising militant attacks in recent years, many claimed by separatist groups and the TTP, which is allied with the Afghan Taliban. The group has grown more active since the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in 2021.
Separately, reports say that at least 23 civilians, including women and children, were killed in an airstrike in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa earlier this week.