PESHAWAR: Twelve militants and four soldiers were killed during a gunbattle in Pakistan’s northern Lower Chitral area bordering Afghanistan on Wednesday, the army’s media wing confirmed in a statement. 

The Pakistani Taliban or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) have stepped up attacks in Pakistan’s western regions bordering Afghanistan ever since a fragile truce between the state and the banned outfit broke down in November 2022.

Wednesday’s attack was claimed by the banned outfit in a statement, which urged the people of Chitral to not panic, adding that their war was against the Pakistan Army. 

“On 6 September 2023, a large group of terrorists equipped with latest weapons, attacked two Pakistani military posts located closer to Pakistan Afghanistan border in general area Kalash, District Chitral,” the army’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement. 

The army said it had picked up the militants’ movement from the Gawardesh, Pitigal, Barg-e-Matel, and Batash areas of Nuristan and Kunar provinces in Afghanistan and had shared them in a timely manner with Afghan authorities. 

“The valiant soldiers fought bravely and repulsed the attacks inflicting heavy casualties on the terrorists,” the ISPR said, adding that 12 militants had been gunned down in the attack. 

The army’s media wing said four soldiers were killed during the exchange of fire, adding that a sanitization operation was being carried out in the area to eliminate any other militants. 

“Interim Afghan Government is expected to fulfill its obligations and deny the use of Afghan soil by terrorists for perpetuating acts of terrorism against Pakistan,” the ISPR said. 

Rasool Dawar, a journalist from northwestern Pakistan who has reported on militancy for over a decade, told Arab News such a large-scale attack had never been witnessed before in Chitral.

“As per history, the TTP carries out at least one large-scale attack in different areas,” Dawar told Arab News. “Chitral seemed to be the safe zone for such a heavy attack as it was considered a soft target.”

Dawar said the area’s administration was not prepared for such a large-scale attack when it occurred. 

“There is not a heavy presence of security forces in Chitral as the region is considered relatively safe compared to other districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province,” he added.