A Pakistani Army captain and five soldiers were killed in a clash with Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants near the Afghan border in Kurram district.
A Pakistani Army captain was among six soldiers killed in a clash with militants near the Afghan border in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Kurram district, the Pakistani military said on Wednesday.
According to a statement from Pakistan’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing, at least seven militants were also killed during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) conducted in the Dogar area of Kurram.
The ISPR said the operation targeted members of Fitna al-Khawarij, a term it uses to describe militants belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The Kurram district, which borders Afghanistan, has become a frequent flashpoint for cross-border militant infiltration and attacks targeting Pakistan’s security forces.
According to Dawn, Among the fallen was Captain Noman Saleem, a 24-year-old medical officer from Mianwali who, according to the army, “fought gallantly and embraced shahadat (martyrdom) along with his five men.” The other soldiers killed were Havaldar Amjad Ali (39, Swabi), Naik Waqas Ahmad (36, Rawalpindi), Sepoy Aijaz Ali (23, Shikarpur), Sepoy Muhammad Waleed (23, Jhelum), and Sepoy Muhammad Shahbaz (32, Khairpur).
ISPR said a sanitisation operation was underway to eliminate any remaining militants in the area.
“The relentless counterterrorism campaign under ‘Azm-e-Istehkam’ will continue at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country,” the statement added.
The clash underscores Pakistan’s escalating security challenges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, where militant attacks have surged since the TTP ended its ceasefire with the government in late 2022.
