ISLAMABAD: At least six terrorists were killed after opening fire on a Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) team during an intelligence-based operation in north western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Saturday.
According to the CTD, the terrorists opened fire as soon as they spotted the police team, prompting a 40-minute retaliatory operation in the Shagayi area of Lakki Marwat district.
During the subsequent search, six terrorists were killed, with the identification process currently underway. Authorities recovered four Kalashnikov rifles, two pistols, eight hand grenades, and an improvised explosive device (IED) from the scene.
Inspector General of KP Police, Zulfiqar Hameed, and the Additional Inspector General of CTD commended the team for their actions. “We will pursue the terrorists to their hideouts and bring them to justice,” IGP Hameed said. “The blood of the martyrs will not go in vain; we will defeat the enemies of peace.”
Operation Ghazab lil-Haq
The operation is part of Operation Ghazab lil-Haq, launched in response to increased cross-border terrorist activity following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in 2021.
Since the operation began, over 650 Afghan Taliban have been killed in Pakistan’s counter-terror strikes along the border and within Afghanistan, while 855 others have been injured. The operation has also led to the destruction of 243 checkposts, the capture of 42 terrorists, and the elimination of 219 tanks, armoured vehicles, and artillery pieces.
Prior to this, Pakistan targeted seven terrorist camps and hideouts of Fitna al-Khawarij (FAK), its affiliates, and Daesh-Khorasan along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Airstrikes in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar, Paktika, and Khost provinces reportedly killed more than 80 terrorists.
The conflict escalated further after unprovoked attacks by the Afghan Taliban and allied terrorists on Pakistan’s border posts in October 2025, which left over 200 terrorists and 23 Pakistani soldiers dead. Despite multiple rounds of talks, Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban regime have been unable to reach a lasting agreement due to the latter’s refusal to act against terrorist outfits.
