10 militants killed during Swabi operation

So far 15 terrorists have been eliminated during intelligence-based operations in district

SWABI: At least 10 more terrorists were killed by security forces and police during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Swabi district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa late Tuesday night.

The raid, which is part of a fresh countrywide crackdown on terrorists dubbed Radd-ul-Fasaad, has eliminated 15 terrorists in different areas of the district in the last two days.

“Security forces received a tip-off that besides those five terrorists who were killed on Tuesday in Gadoon Amzai, there were others hiding near Baja-Bamkhel Bypass” a senior security official told The Express Tribune.

The official added that though some suspects might have fled the scene, the security apparatus was in place and they will soon be hunted down. The cross-fire between security forces and terrorists near a commerce college in Topi continued for at least four hours, the official said.



The unidentified bodies of those killed during the raid were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital in Swabi but locals said most of them belonged to proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Swat chapter, the official claimed.

Meanwhile, security has been put on high alert in the district and security forces are conducting limited intelligence-based operations in several areas.

Two army personnel, including a captain, were also martyred in Tuesday's raid which, according to Inter-Services Public Relations, took place in the Malikabad area of Gadoon Amazai. Two policemen were also critically injured in the operation. Gadoon Amazai shares borders with Malakand and Hazara divisions of K-P.

The IBO took place two days after security forces repulsed a massive cross-border attack by terrorists sheltering in Afghanistan. Five servicemen went down defending their three border posts against hundreds of marauding terrorists in Mohmand Agency. Fifteen attackers were also killed in the battle.

69 suspects held in countrywide raids

Meanwhile, the security forces claimed to have rounded up 69 suspects across the country during Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad.

At least 30 suspects were arrested in Peshawar while 15 from Toru area of Mardan, while arms and ammunition were also recovered from their possession, according to Radio Pakistan.

Further, Rangers and police in Karachi also arrested 24 suspects from different areas of the port city.