Pakistan’s security forces kill militant in tribal district bordering Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD: Security forces gunned down a militant in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal district bordering Afghanistan on Monday, as the military’s media wing, ISPR, informed in a statement he was involved in the killing of a local politician belonging to a prominent religious party.
North Waziristan served as a safe haven for militants for years until the government decided to launch massive military operations to reclaim the territory. The top militant leaders, subsequently, escaped to neighboring Afghanistan, though many of their foot soldiers melted away by mingling with the local population.
According to the ISPR, the military carried out an intelligence-based operation in Mir Ali, a small settlement in North Waziristan, in which an “intense fire exchange” took place which led to the killing of one militant.
“Weapon and ammunition were also recovered from the killed terrorist,” the ISPR statement said, adding that the militant was actively involved in “terrorist activities” against security forces and had killed several citizens.
“He was also involved in [the] target killing of Qari Sami in North Waziristan district,” added the statement.
Qari Samiuddin, who belonged to Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-Islam (JUI-F) party, was ambushed in North Waziristan last month while he was going to his residence with another colleague.
The recent operation in the area was carried out a few days after the Pakistan Army rejected social media reports of heavy militant presence in the country’s northwestern Swat valley while calling them “exaggerated and misleading.”
Last week, thousands protested in two main towns of Swat to denounce violence after reports of increasing militant presence started circulating in the area.
The Pakistan Army said it would not tolerate militant activity anywhere in the region while promising “full use of force” if necessary.