The security forces have killed one terrorist while retaliating to an attack on one of their posts in the Zarghoon area of Balochistan on Saturday.
According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), three soldiers were also martyred while fighting terrorists.
The early-morning attack by a group of terrorists was launched at a post that was established recently to “help check extortion efforts targeting coal mines in the area”, said the ISPR which added that the security forces “retaliated readily to the fire raid”, pushing back terrorists.
It said three soldiers embraced martyrdom while one terrorist was killed in the heavy exchange of fire.
“Based on follow-up ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance) effort, the likely hideout of fleeing terrorists has been identified in nearby mountains and a deliberate blocking and sanitisation operation has been launched,” the ISPR statement read.
It added that the operation was progressing well and security forces were maintaining pressure to deny terrorists escape from the area.
“Security forces, in step with the nation, remain determined to thwart attempts at sabotaging peace, stability and progress of Balochistan,” the statement said.
A rise in terrorist activities, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan has been witnessed following the termination of the ceasefire by Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan in November.
Recently, in the Dir Duni area of North Waziristan district in KP, six Pakistan Army soldiers were martyred in a firefight with militants.
During his first press briefing last month, ISPR Director General Maj Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry reported that 293 individuals had been martyred and 521 injured in 436 terrorist incidents over the past year.
In KP, 192 casualties occurred in 219 terror-related activities, while Balochistan witnessed 80 fatalities in 206 incidents. Punjab suffered 14 losses in five attacks, and Sindh reported seven deaths in six terrorism incidents.
Maj Gen Chaudhry further highlighted that 8,269 intelligence-based operations were carried out by the army and law enforcement agencies, resulting in arrest of 1,378 suspected terrorists and the killing of 157.
The DG ISPR also disclosed that a total of 137 security personnel were martyred, and 117 were injured in anti-terror operations throughout the ongoing year.
