ISLAMABAD: At least 12 terrorists were killed after security forces repulsed a major overnight attack on a joint police check post in Tank district, while 15 security personnel and officials were martyred when the attackers detonated an explosive-laden vehicle at the post’s perimeter, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Friday.
According to the military’s media wing, the attack was carried out during the night of July 23-24 by militants it described as belonging to “Fitna Al Khwarij.” The assailants attempted to breach the security of the joint police check post, but troops responded swiftly, engaging the fleeing attackers and killing all 12 terrorists.
The ISPR said that, in a final act of desperation, the attackers rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into the perimeter wall of the check post. The powerful blast caused extensive damage to the infrastructure and resulted in the martyrdom of 15 personnel, including 12 soldiers, two policemen and one government official from the Forest Department.
A sanitisation operation is under way in the area to eliminate any remaining militants, the statement added.
Separately, security forces continued intelligence-based operations under Operation Azm in Balochistan’s Khad Kocha area of Mastung, where four terrorists were killed, according to security sources.
Weapons, ammunition and motorcycles allegedly used by the militants were recovered during the operation. Security sources said multiple terrorists were also injured, while several suspected facilitators were arrested. Search and clearance operations remain in progress.
The latest operation follows a series of recent terrorist incidents in the Khad Kocha area, after which intelligence-based operations were intensified.
The ISPR said Pakistan’s counterterrorism campaign under the Azm-e-Istehkam framework would continue until the threat of terrorism is eliminated, reaffirming the resolve of the security forces to safeguard the country’s peace and stability.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026