Pakistan: Thirteen Terrorists Killed in South Waziristan Operation Amid Rising TTP Attacks

 Thirteen terrorists were killed in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) conducted in Pakistan's  South Waziristan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) reported on Wednesday. The operation followed a rise in terrorist activities since the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) broke a fragile ceasefire agreement with the government in 2022. This escalation has led to an increase in attacks on security forces and law enforcement agencies, particularly in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

According to the Interior Ministry, of the 1,566 reported terrorism incidents in the past 10 months, 948 occurred in KP, resulting in 583 fatalities (out of a total of 924 martyrs). The operation follows a recent terrorist attack in South Waziristan on Saturday, where 16 soldiers were martyred at a checkpost in Makeen. In response, security forces killed eight terrorists.

The ISPR reported that security forces carried out an operation in the general area of Sararogha, South Waziristan, on December 24-25, after receiving intelligence about the presence of terrorists. The forces successfully engaged the terrorists, killing 13 who had been involved in numerous attacks against security forces and the killing of innocent civilians. The military statement further noted that a sanitization operation is ongoing to eliminate any remaining terrorists in the area.

This operation coincided with reports of strikes by Pakistan on what were believed to be TTP camps in Afghanistan's Paktika province. These strikes reportedly resulted in several terrorists being killed or wounded. However, no official statement has been released by Pakistani authorities regarding the strikes. Pakistan has consistently accused the TTP of using Afghan territory to launch attacks on Pakistan, a claim that Afghanistan denies.

In July, the Pakistani government officially designated the TTP as "Fitna al Khawarij," a term that mandates all institutions to refer to TTP members as "khariji" (outcasts) in recognition of their terrorist activities against Pakistan. Earlier this month, the Interior Ministry reported that 341 terrorists had been killed in 2,801 IBOs over the first 10 months of 2024. Additionally, 800 individuals were placed on the Fourth Schedule under the Anti-Terrorism Act, a list that includes 400 individuals from Punjab, 203 from KP, 173 from Balochistan, 21 from Sindh, and 3 from Gilgit-Baltistan, as part of efforts to monitor suspected terrorist activity.