ISLAMABAD: Fifteen Pakistani Taliban militants were killed in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province in two separate counterterror operations last week, the military’s media wing said on Tuesday.
According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), security forces conducted the first intelligence-based operation in the northwestern Dera Ismail Khan district on Nov. 15 and 16. It said 10 militants, including Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) leader Alam Mehsud, were killed.
In the second operation conducted in North Waziristan district in the Datta Khel area, the ISPR said five more militants were killed.
“Sanitization operations are being conducted to eliminate any other Indian sponsored kharji found in the area,” the military’s media wing said in a statement.
Pakistan’s military and government frequently use the term “khawarij” to describe the TTP or the Pakistani Taliban militants. The military also alleges that the Indian government arms and funds the TTP and separatist militant outfits in KP and Balochistan. New Delhi denies the allegations.
