Precision bombing: Air strikes kill 23 militants in Tirah, Shawal valleys

As many as six terrorist hideouts destroyed

PESHAWAR:

Jets on Friday carried out fresh airstrikes on terrorist hideouts in the tribal belt near the border with Afghanistan, killing at least 23 militants associated with banned organisations and injuring at least 10 others.

In a statement issued by the military’s media wing, the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) said planes pounded targets in the remote, mountainous Tirah Valley of Khyber Agency and Shawal Valley in North Waziristan that straddles the border with Afghanistan.

“As a result of precise air strikes, six terrorist hideouts were destroyed in which 23 terrorists were killed and more than 10 injured,” the ISPR said.

An official told The Express Tribune that they had focussed on militants affiliated with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and Lashkar-e-Islam groups.

The strikes are part of the operation launched by the military in June 2014, codenamed Zarb-e-Azb, which are aimed at clearing Taliban and al Qaeda strongholds. The military had expanded the offensive in Khyber in October 2014, carrying out air strikes and using artillery, mortars and ground troops.

According to official figures, over 3,400 militants have been killed since the operation was launched half-way through 2014.

Friday’s strikes follow another blitz earlier this week which had targeted militant hideouts in the Rajgal and Sparee areas of Tirah Valley. The army had claimed that six militants had been killed in those strikes, with eight others injured.

The number of attacks in Pakistan has fallen around 70 per cent this year, due to a combination of a military offensive against Taliban bases along the Afghan border and government initiatives to tackle militancy.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 19^th, 2015.