Eleven Pakistani Army personnel, including a lieutenant colonel and a Major, were killed during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Orakzai district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Pakistani military’s media wing confirmed on Wednesday.
According to a statement by the Pakistan’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), security forces conducted the IBO in Orakzai district following reports of terrorists belonging to the Indian proxy group, Fitna Al Khwarij, being present in the area, reports DWAN news.
The Pakistan ISPR statement said, “During the operation, 19 Indian-sponsored Khwarij militants were killed as a result of effective engagement by our troops.”
The statement further confirmed that during the exchange of fire, Lieutenant Colonel Junaid Tariq, aged 39, who was leading his troops, and his second-in-command, 33-year-old Major Tayyab Rahat, embraced martyrdom alongside nine other soldiers.
The fallen soldiers were identified as 38-year-old Naib Subedar Azam Gul, 35-year-old Naik Adil Hussain, 34-year-old Naik Gul Ameer, 31-year-old Lance Naik Sher Khan, 32-year-old Lance Naik Talish Faraz, 32-year-old Lance Naik Irshad Hussain, 28-year-old Sepoy Tufail Khan, 23-year-old Sepoy Aqib Ali, and 24-year-old Sepoy Muhammad Zahid.
The Pakistani ISPR also mentioned that a sanitisation operation is ongoing to eliminate any remaining Indian-sponsored Khwarij in the area. The statement emphasised that security forces remain “determined to eradicate the threat of Indian-sponsored terrorism,” and that the sacrifices of the fallen soldiers only strengthen this resolve.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif paid tribute to the security forces for killing 19 terrorists and expressed his condolences over the martyrdom of the soldiers, including Lieutenant Colonel Junaid Tariq and Major Tayyab Rahat, in a statement from the prime minister’s office.
