
14 TTP terrorists neutralised in K-P operations
Security forces and police on Saturday killed 14 terrorists, belonging to outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and arrested eight others in two different operations in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P). During these encounters, two policemen and a security forces personnel also sustained injuries.
According to an official statement, the K-P Police and security forces conducted a joint operation in Hangu district after receiving intelligence about the presence of terrorists in the Zargari Shanawar area.
A fierce exchange of gunfire took place, during which police and security forces eliminated nine terrorists. Hangu District Police Officer (DPO) Mohammad Khalid Khan, Doaba SHO Nabi Khan and one security forces' personnel also received bullet wounds.
The DPO was reported to be in stable condition. He was initially moved to Kohat and is expected to be airlifted to Peshawar.
Separately, Security forces conduct a coordinated operation in the Mazari Baba area of Malakand district, and killed at least five terrorists, according to initial reports. Two terrorists got injured while eight members of the TTP, also called Fitna al-Khawarij, were also rounded up.
The forces acted promptly after receiving tip-off regarding infiltration of the terrorists from neighboring Afghanistan and cordoned off the area, leading to intense engagement. The operation continued till the filing of the report, However, the situation in the area was under control.
In a statement, President Asif Ali Zardari commended the security forces for effectively engaging and neutralizing the Fitna Al-Hindustan terrorists. He also prayed for the swift recovery of the injured DPO and SHO.
Zardari said terrorists wanted to sabotage peace and stability which could not be allowed, adding the nation was united and the scourge of terrorism would be defeated at all costs. He further reiterated the resolve that the state would continue its efforts with full force to root out terrorism.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also paid tribute to the police forces for killing nine Khawarij in the security operation in Hangu. He prayed for the speedy recovery of DPO Khan.
K-P Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur lauded Hangu DPO and his team for a successful counter-terrorism operation, stating that he "salutes Khan and his team for their bravery."
Gandapur noted that DPO Khan personally confronted the terrorists on the frontline and, along with his team, foiled the militants' designs with exceptional courage and determination. "We are proud of such brave and fearless police officers and personnel," he said.
He added that the history of the K-P Police is filled with stories of valour and sacrifice, and reaffirmed that the entire nation stands with the security forces in the fight against terrorism.
K-P Inspector General of Police Zulfiqar Hameed contacted the officers injured in Hangu operation to inquire after their health. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also telephoned DPO Muhammad Khalid Khan, inquired about his condition and commended his bravery and leadership.
"Under your command, the police team displayed immense courage and eliminated five terrorists of Fitna [al-Khawarij]," he said. He lauded the entire Hangu police team for their successful operation and described their action as a significant blow to terrorism.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Express Tribune
27 minutes ago
- Express Tribune
Imran urges leaders to set aside differences
PTI founder Imran Khan has ordered every member of his party to immediately set aside all internal differences and focus solely on the party's August 5 protest movement, "for which no meaningful momentum is being built at present". In a special message dated July 22 released from Adiala Jail, the former prime minister described PTI leaders' internal rifts at this "critical juncture" as "disgraceful and condemnable" and warned that anyone found engaging in factionalism within the party will be expelled. He said he was fighting for the future of our generations, and every sacrifice he made was for that cause. "To create rifts within the party at this time would be a direct betrayal of my mission and vision," he added. According to the PTI founder, the "so-called government formed through Form 47" has crippled the judiciary through the 26th Constitutional Amendment. "The way biased judges are now delivering blatantly unjust verdicts under these courts is visible to the entire nation. We must launch a robust campaign to liberate the judiciary, for no nation can survive, let alone progress, without judicial independence." Imran said his greatest success is that despite unprecedented oppression, the public stands with him. "On February 8th (2024), the people expressed their trust in Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf by voting for you even in the absence of an electoral symbol. After such a clear mandate, it is the moral and political responsibility of every party member to become the voice of the people," he added. At the beginning of the message, Imran Khan claimed that never in the history of Pakistan had any political leader been subjected to the treatment that he was currently enduring. He said former PM Nawaz Sharif committed corruption worth billions and was nevertheless granted every possible comfort in prison. "In contrast, never before has the innocent and apolitical spouse of a political figure been imprisoned under such inhumane conditions as those imposed upon Bushra Bibi." The PTI patron-in-chief stated that he was enduring the harshest prison term in the country's history solely for the supremacy of the Constitution and in service of my nation. On Thursday, Judge Shahrukh Arjumand of the Special Central FIA Court adjourned till July 26 the hearing of the Toshakhana-II case in which Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi are key accused. During the hearing held inside a courtroom in Rawalpindi's Adiala Jail, both Imran and Bushra were presented. Later, talking to the media outside the prison PTI's Central Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, Imran's sister Aleema Khan and PTI Senator Ali Zafar, stated that the Toshakhana-II trial should be declared null and void, as a closed-door trial is a violation of the Constitution and the law. They said Imran's sons, Kasim Khan and Sulaiman Khan, have both confirmed their plan to come to Pakistan. They said it was their constitutional right to meet their incarcerated father. In this regard, a formal constitutional petition is being filed in the Islamabad High Court this week. The purpose of filing the petition is to ensure that the jail authorities have no legal grounds to deny the meeting. The petition is expected to be filed at any time, they added.


Express Tribune
27 minutes ago
- Express Tribune
Opposition calls APC on July 31-Aug 1
An alliance of opposition parties — Tehreek Tahaffuz-e-Ain — has announced a two-day all parties conference (APC), which will be held in Islamabad on July 31 and August 1 as part of its professed struggle to ensure the supremacy of the Constitution and law. "We will hold an APC and invite people from state institutions as well. We will step out for the sake of this country. Whatever issue concerns any section of society, we will support it unconditionally," said head of the alliance, Mahmood Khan Achakzai during a press conference in Islamabad. Achakzai, who is also the chief of the PkMAP, claimed that the opposition's alliance is the first political alliance not formed at the behest of any institution. It is also not created for spectacle or drama, he added. According to the politician, the alliance would continue until the country has a truly impartial polls oversight authority, supremacy of the Constitution, and a parliament that is the true source of power. Referring to former prime minister Imran Khan, he said the leader of the party that won the general elections of February 8 was jailed and a government was formed by terrorizing the people. This is an insult to governance, he added. Achakzai claimed that anti-terrorism courts (ATC) sentenced both adults and minors to ten years in prison in the May 9 cases. "We will go from street to street and alley to alley in protest against this government. We will protest from Gilgit-Baltistan to Gwadar, but we will neither use abusive language nor violence," he said. PTI's Salman Akram Raja also addressed the media, stating that the country needed to be set on the right path as it could not be run through the use of force. "Our movement for the protection of the Constitution' is constitutional and ideological. We do not intend violence. No one should use this movement as a pretext to impose more repression. Our people have been punished solely because they were affiliated with the PTI," he said.


Express Tribune
an hour ago
- Express Tribune
Centre to help resolve Sindh's water woes
The federal government assured the Sindh government on Thursday of its full cooperation in addressing the province's water-related issues, including K-IV Phase-1, improvements in the Hub Canal water share, the Right Bank Outfall Drain (RBOD), and water distribution under the 1991 Water Accord. Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah held a meeting with Federal Water Resources Minister Moin Wattoo at the Chief Minister House to discuss key water projects. The issue of water shortage for Karachi metropolis figured prominently in the meeting. The meeting was attended by Provincial Planning Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah, Local Government Minister Saeed Ghani, Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro, Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) Chairman Naveed Asghar Chaudhry, Sindh Chief Secretary Rahim Sheikh and senior officers. The meeting took place after a visit to the K-IV project by Wattoo, along with provincial Planning Minister Nasir Shah. The meeting was informed that with 63% construction work finished, the project's Phase I would be completed next year. The water requirement of Karachi, at present, is 1,300 million gallons per day (MGD). However, the city receives half of its needs – 650 MGD. To meet the shortage, the Sindh government planned K-IV project to supply 650 MGD from Keenjhar Lake to the city. WAPDA is working on Phase-1 of the project, following its approval from the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) in January 2022 at a cost of Rs126.404 billion. Despite administrative approval, the chief minister stated that the project faced challenges that needed federal intervention. Shah pointed out that the project required Rs39.964 billion funding during the current fiscal year, 2025-26, but the federal government had allocated Rs3.209 billion only. It could cause delays, risking cost escalation and contractor claims. Wattoo told the chief minister that he would brief Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif regarding the project to secure additional funds. He acknowledged that Sindh had mostly resolved the Right of Way (ROW) issues but two major obstacles still remained – land acquisition in Thatta and a court case. The chief minister assured that the land for the pumping station in Thatta would be handed over soon. He also assured the federal government of the release of Rs8.5 billion as part of the fourth quarterly instalment in Sindh's share of funding in the project. Chief Minister Shah said that Sindh had repaired the old Hub Canal and built a new 100 MGD-capacity channel to improve water supply to Karachi. Both leaders agreed to conduct a technical survey to assess water availability before submitting recommendations to the Council of Common Interests (CCI). Inter-provincial water distribution The chief minister urged the federal minister to facilitate a direct meeting between Sindh and Punjab's irrigation departments to resolve the water-sharing disputes. He emphasised that water distribution must be done under the 1991 Water Accord. Chief Minister Shah recalled that the CCI had tasked the then attorney general for Pakistan with reviewing the accord during the tenure of former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. Wattoo agreed to hold separate meetings with representatives from both provinces.