LAHORE/RAWALPINDI: Security forces killed 15 militants while foiling an infiltration attempt across the Pakistan-Afghanistan border opposite North Waziristan district, the Inter-Services Public Relations said on Thursday.
According to the ISPR statement, the movement of a group attempting to cross the border was detected on the night of August 31-September 1, and troops engaged them in an action lasting 36 hours. A significant quantity of weapons and ammunition was recovered during a follow-up sanitisation operation, which the military said was continuing. The ISPR identified those killed as belonging to “Indian-sponsored Fitna al-Khawarij”, the state’s designated term for the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.
The military said the Afghan Taliban administration had “consistently failed to ensure effective border management and honour its international obligations”. Kabul has repeatedly rejected accusations that Afghan territory is used for attacks on Pakistan.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif expressed gratitude over the foiling of the attempt and paid tribute to the security forces, lauding their courage and professionalism. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Acting President Yousuf Raza Gilani issued similar statements.
The operation comes amid sustained militant activity in the country’s western provinces. A Centre for Research and Security Studies assessment for the second quarter of 2026 found Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan together accounted for nearly 96 per cent of violence-linked deaths nationwide, with KP recording 475 deaths across 151 incidents and Balochistan 265 deaths across 94 incidents.
The ISPR said counterterrorism operations would continue under the Azm-e-Istehkam vision approved by the Federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan.
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