Two terrorists were killed and one was arrested in an operation carried out by security forces in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan area on Sunday, the military’s media wing said in a statement.

“On 09 December 2024, Security Forces conducted an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in general area Kulachi, Dera Ismail Khan District on [the] reported presence of khwarij,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.

During the operation, security personnel engaged the terrorists, two of whom were “sent to hell”, while one terrorist was “apprehended in injured condition”.

According to the ISPR, weapons and ammunition were seized from the terrorists, who were “actively involved in terrorist activities against the security forces as well as target killing of innocent civilians”.

“[A] sanitisation operation is being conducted to eliminate any other Kharji found in the area, as security forces of Pakistan are determined to wipe out the menace of terrorism from the country,” the ISPR statement read.

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif issued separate statements praising security forces for carrying out eh operation successfully.

The PM appreciated “the officers and men of the security forces for killing two foreigners and arresting one during the Prime Minister’s operation,” a statement posted by state broadcaster PTV News on X read.

“We will continue the war against the monster of terrorism until its complete elimination from the country,” PM Shehbaz was quoted as saying. “The proud officers and officials of the security forces are busy day and night to clean the land from hostile elements.”

“The entire nation, including me, is standing by the side of the security forces in this war of terror,” the PM said.

Meanwhile, the president paid tribute to security forces for conducting the operation in a statement published on X by the PPP’s media cell.

The statement expressed “the determination of the President to continue operations until the complete elimination of the monster of terrorism from the country.”

“The entire nation is with its security forces for the complete elimination of Fitna-ul-Khawarij,” the statement read.

In July, the government, through an official notification, designated the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as Fitna al Khawarij, while mandating all institutions to use the term khariji (outcast) when referring to the perpetrators of terrorist attacks on Pakistan.

On Saturday, six soldiers were martyred and 22 terrorists were eliminated in engagements in three districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

A statement from ISPR said the engagements took place on Friday and Saturday, stating that security forces foiled a terrorist attack on a security post in Thall district and killed three.

“However, during the intense fire exchange, six brave sons of soil, having fought gallantly, paid the ultimate sacrifice and embraced martyrdom,” the ISPR said.

The martyrs were Sepoy Nizamuddin, Naib Subedar Muhammad Khaliq, Havaldar Jadid Ali and Lance Naiks Shaheedur Rehman, Sifatullah and Wilayat Hussain.

In Tank district, it said an IBO was conducted by security forces in the Gul Imam area, during which nine terrorists were “sent to hell” while six others were injured.

Similarly in another operation in North Waziristan district, ten terrorists were “successfully neutralised”, the ISPR said.

The country has lately witnessed a sharp uptick in the number of attacks targeting security forces, other law enforcement agencies, and security checkpoints, particularly in Balochistan and KP.

Attacks escalated after the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) broke a fragile ceasefire agreement with the government in 2022 and vowed to target security forces.

At least 245 people, including 68 security personnel, were killed in a string of terrorist attacks and clashes across Pakistan in November.

The fatalities included 127 terrorists, and 50 civilians, according to data released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies, an Islamabad-based think tank.

November is the second deadliest month after August, when 254 people lost their lives, including 92 civilians, 108 militants, and 54 security forces personnel.

However, in terms of casualties involving security personnel, it is the deadliest month this year compared to October when 62 soldiers were killed.