Pakistan’s security forces killed 20 militants in two separate operations across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on November 8-9, according to the military’s public affairs wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
The operations targeted armed groups in the region as part of ongoing counter-terrorism efforts.
The first operation, based on intelligence reports, took place in the Shawal area of North Waziristan District. Security forces engaged the militant positions, resulting in the deaths of eight fighters.
A second operation in Dara Adam Khel District involved intense exchanges of fire, leading to the neutralization of twelve additional militants.
Authorities said sanitization operations are ongoing to locate and remove any remaining threats in the region. The ISPR said these efforts are part of Pakistan’s broader counter-terrorism campaign under the initiative Azm-e-Istehkam, approved by the Federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan, aimed at eliminating both domestic and foreign-supported armed groups.
Militants associated with the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are frequently referred to by Pakistani authorities as Fitna al-Khawarij. Islamabad has also, in recent months, used the term Fitna al-Hindustan for certain militant and separatist groups, citing external support.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused both India and Afghanistan’s Taliban government of backing insurgents in its western border regions, claims that both governments have consistently denied.
North Waziristan, which borders Afghanistan, has experienced a surge in violence since a ceasefire with the TTP collapsed in late 2022, highlighting ongoing security challenges in Pakistan’s northwest frontier.
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