Pakistan: Islamic State commander killed in Balochistan

The military announced on Sunday that Pakistani security forces have killed a militant ringleader connected to the outlawed group Daesh during an intelligence-based operation in the unrest-plagued Khyber district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The Pakistan Army’s media branch, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said that the security forces launched an operation in response to information on the alleged presence of a “high-profile terrorist” in the area. The military announced in a statement that Surat Gul, also known as Saifullah, of Daesh (Islamic State), a “high-value terrorist ringleader,” had been eliminated during a fierce gunfight. The “terrorist commander,” who was wanted by law enforcement for his involvement in multiple terrorist acts, including “targeted killing of innocent civilians as well as extortion,” also had weapons, ammo, and explosives retrieved from him, according to the ISPR. Attacks on electoral commission offices in the provinces of Sindh and Balochistan as well as candidates running for office surged ahead of Pakistan’s general elections, which were held on February 8. At least 12 people were killed and numerous others injured in a major bomb blast outside the election office of an independent candidate in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, a day before the national elections.