ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's military said a soldier and four militants were killed Sunday in a shootout during a raid near the border with Afghanistan.
The military said two soldiers were also injured during the raid in the Spinwam area of North Waziristan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
North Waziristan served as a headquarters for local and foreign militants until 2017, when the army said it had cleared the mountainous region of insurgents following several operations. The region still sees sporadic attacks, mainly targeting security forces.
Such incidents have raised fears that the Pakistani Taliban are regrouping.
Separately, in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, a Pakistani official said Indian cross-border firing killed a 7-year-old girl and wounded 10 villagers.
Umar Azam, the deputy commissioner of Kotli district in Azad Kashmir, said Pakistani troops returned fire across the border.
There was no immediate comment from India.
The fighting came amid increasing tensions between the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbors.
Earlier this month, Pakistani and Indian troops exchanged fire across the frontier, leaving 12 people dead, including three Indian and one Pakistani soldier, and wounding at least 36 on both sides. The fatalities were some of the highest reported in recent years.
Since gaining independence from Britain in 1947, Pakistan and India have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir, which is split between them and claimed by both in its entirety.
Pakistan and India routinely accuse each other of unprovoked attacks along the tense Kashmir frontier in violation of a 2003 ceasefire agreement.
Pakistan says soldier, 4 militants killed near Afghan border
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Pakistan says soldier, 4 militants killed near Afghan border
- Two soldiers were also injured during the raid in the Spinwam area of North Waziristan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province
- Separately, in the disputed region of Kashmir, a Pakistani official said Indian cross-border firing killed a 7-year-old girl and wounded 10 villagers
Pakistan military says 13 militants killed in counterterror operations across northwest
- Military says counterterror operations launched in Bajaur, Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan, Khyber and South Waziristan districts
- The counterterror operations take place as Afghanistan and Pakistan remain locked in conflict since late last month
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces this week killed 13 militants in five separate counterterror operations in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the military’s media wing said on Sunday, vowing to eliminate militancy from the country.
The counterterror operations were conducted on Mar. 6-7, with Pakistani troops killing five militants in the northwestern Bajaur district in the first operation. In two other encounters in Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan district, security forces killed three militants belonging to the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.
Meanwhile, five other militants were killed in two separate counterterror operations in Khyber and South Waziristan districts in which five more militants were slain.
“Weapons and ammunition were also recovered from Indian-sponsored killed khwarij, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the area,” ISPR said in a statement.
Pakistan’s military frequently uses the term “Fitna al Khwarij” to describe TTP militants. The militant outfit has carried out some of the deadliest attacks against Pakistani civilians and security forces since 2007 in a bid to impose their strict brand of Islamic law across the country.
Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of sheltering the TTP and facilitating their attacks against Pakistan, a charge Kabul has denied. Pakistan also accuses India of supporting these militant groups, which New Delhi has repeatedly rejected.
The counterterror operations take place as Pakistan remains locked in conflict with Afghanistan since late February.
The worst fighting between the two sides began late last month when Afghan forces launched a surprise attack on Pakistani military installations along their shared border. Afghanistan said the assault was in retaliation for Pakistan’s earlier airstrikes in February on what Islamabad described as militant camps inside Afghanistan.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Saturday that Islamabad has killed 527 Afghan Taliban fighters and injured more than 755 since clashes began.
Afghanistan has also claimed attacking multiple Pakistani military bases and killing several Pakistani soldiers. Arab News has not independently verified the claims by both sides.
Pakistan has ruled out talks with Afghanistan and said it will continue its military operations in the country till it withdraws support for militant groups that Islamabad says operate from Afghanistan.
