Pakistan on Sunday conducted intelligence-based ground operations and “precision strikes” on terrorist hideouts and sanctuaries along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, killing 29 militants, the Associated Press reported. The operation came a day after militants armed with guns and explosives attacked the Sindh Rangers headquarters in Karachi, killing security personnel. Pakistan said the latest action was taken in response to a series of militant attacks across the country.Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar posted onTalal said security forces first launched an intelligence-based ground operation in the Bajaur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, close to the border with Pakistan and Afghanistan. He said four militants were killed during the operation, including a “high-value” commander identified as Khan Farosh.Pakistan subsequently carried out so-called “precision strikes” against three armed targets in Afghanistan’s Paktia, Paktika and Kunar provinces. Talal said the airstrike destroyed terrorist camps and hideouts belonging to the People’s Liberation Army and Fitna Khwarij and killed 25 other militants. Large amounts of weapons and ammunition stored at these sites were also destroyed, he added.The operation followed an attack on the Karachi district headquarters of Sindh Rangers on Saturday night. According to Pakistani authorities, the militants rammed a car through the compound’s gate, then opened fire and threw grenades. Security forces killed three attackers and arrested another militant, whom the military identified as a wounded Afghan national.A splinter faction of the Pakistani Taliban, the liberal faction, claimed responsibility for the Karachi attack.“Pakistan remains committed to maintaining peace and stability in the region without compromising on the safety and security of our citizens, which remains our top priority,” Talal said.Pakistan has seen a sharp increase in armed attacks against security forces in recent years. Islamabad has repeatedly accused the Afghan Taliban government of harboring TTP militants and allowing them to launch cross-border attacks, a charge Kabul has always denied.Pakistan has launched a number of cross-border attacks since last year, saying it targets the TTP and its allied militant groups operating from bases in Afghanistan.There was no immediate response from Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government.(Based on input from each agency)
