Army Major Martyred in a Gwadar IED Blast as Four Terrorists Are Killed in a Kalat Operation in Balochistan

RAWALPINDI: Two operations in two corners of Balochistan ended very differently on the same weekend. During the Balochistan operations, security forces killed four terrorists in Kalat district, but in Pasni, in Gwadar district, an improvised explosive device took the life of the officer leading the clearance party, Major Wajahat Waheed. The military’s media wing, the ISPR, set out both actions in a statement issued on Monday.

A hideout hit in Kalat, and a large cache recovered

Acting on intelligence reports of several Fitna al Hindustan hideouts in Shadi Kaur, in Pasni tehsil, and in Jattakabad, in Kalat district — hideouts the ISPR said were a threat to the local population — troops moved into Jattakabad on October 18. The hideout was engaged directly, and after an intense exchange of fire four terrorists were killed. A large cache of arms and ammunition was recovered from the site.

In Pasni, the lead party was the target

The second action was still under way in Shadi Kaur when a security forces contingent was targeted with an IED. Major Wajahat Waheed, 34, from Lahore, who was leading that party, was martyred in the blast. The ISPR said sanitisation operations would continue in the area until any remaining terrorists there are eliminated.

The campaign, the statement insists, is not slowing down

The statement closed with the now-familiar commitment: the counter-terrorism campaign under Azm-e-Istehkam, approved by the Federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan, will continue at full pace, and the security forces and law enforcement agencies remain determined to wipe out foreign-sponsored terrorism. The operations come in a hard season — figures compiled by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies counted 225 militant attacks across the country in September, the highest monthly total in twelve years.