Rawalpindi: The military smashed a terrorist hideout near Ziarat, in which five terrorists were killed and a soldier was martyred.
In a statement issued by the army’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military is continuing an operation in the Ziarat area to recover the missing tourist.
Between the night of July 14 and 15, the military said, security forces identified a suspected terrorist hideout in the Khalifat mountains near Khost.
The military said that they encircled the terrorists and started to slowly tighten the noose.
Earlier on Thursday, the military had confirmed that terrorists had abducted two people, including a serving, high ranking officer, Lt Col Laiq Baig Mirza and an accompanying tourists as they returned from a visit to the Quaid-e-Azam Residency in Ziarat.
In a search operation conducted by SSG commandos, the terrorists killed Lt Col Mirza and fled with the abducted tourist.
“Two terrorists were killed while a cache of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), explosives and ammunition were recovered,” the statement read, adding, that the remaining terrorists managed to flee along with the other abductee for the time being.
When the terrorists noticed the troops, they opened fire. In the ensuing exchange of fire, a soldier, identified by the military as Havildar Khan Muhammad was martyred due to enemy fire.
The military launched a follow-up clearance operation in the area during which five terrorists were killed following a heavy exchange of fire.
The ISPR said that the terrorists had had associations with the proscribed Baloch Liberation Army (BLA).
The military added that their operations to apprehend the remaining perpetrators are continuing in the area to recover the missing tourist.
