14 more terrorists killed in Zhob mop-up operation
Security forces have killed another 14 terrorists in a "sanitisation operation" in the Zhob district of volatile Balochistan province, the military said on Saturday — a day after 33 terrorists were neutralised while attempting to infiltrate into Pakistan from neighbouring Afghanistan.
The military's media wing said a "deliberate sanitisation operation" was conducted in the surrounding areas of Sambaza along the Pak-Afghan border on the night between August 8 and 9.
"During the conduct of the operation, 14 Indian-sponsored Khwarij were hunted down and successfully neutralised," the ISPR said in a statement. "Weapons, ammunition, and explosives were also recovered from the killed Khwarij."
A day earlier, the ISPR reported that security forces had thwarted an infiltration attempt in the Sambaza area of Zhob on the night between August 7 and 8, in which 33 terrorists were "sent to hell".
The number of Khwarij killed in two days has now risen to 47, the statement added, while releasing what it described as aerial images of the targeted terrorists in mountainous terrain.
Terrorists from the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — responsible for much of the terrorist violence in the country — have been officially designated as "Fitna al-Khwarij." Officials claim they receive financial and material support from India's intelligence agency, RAW.
The ISPR stated that the security forces remain committed to securing the nation's frontiers and thwarting attempts to sabotage the peace, stability, and progress of Pakistan.
The TTP and its affiliated groups fled across the border into Afghanistan following their defeat in the 2014 Zarb-e-Azb military offensive in the former tribal regions. There, they established sanctuaries that have since served as launch pads for cross-border attacks.
In Afghanistan, the TTP forged a symbiotic alliance with other terrorist outfits — particularly the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) — to intensify operations inside Pakistan. Officials in Islamabad say they have credible evidence of both tactical and strategic coordination between the BLA's deadly Majeed Brigade and the TTP.
These claims are echoed in the latest UN Security Council report, which unequivocally states that the Majeed Brigade and the TTP maintain "close coordination" in their terrorist activities. The report highlights several high-profile, complex attacks in 2025 as evidence of their operational synchronisation.
Pakistan has repeatedly urged the interim Taliban regime to honour its pledge under the Doha Accord not to allow Afghan soil to be used by transnational militant groups against other countries. However, the Taliban has so far refrained from acting against these outfits, with reports suggesting it views them as leverage in its dealings with neighbouring states.
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