22 March 2017•Update: 22 March 2017
By Aamir Latif
KARACHI, Pakistan
At least five suspected militants and two army troops were killed during a clash in northwest Pakistan near the border with Afghanistan on Wednesday, according to Pakistani army.
The clash took place during an “intelligence-based” security operation in remote Orakzai tribal agency, located some 100 kilometers (62 miles) from Peshawar, the capital of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhawa province, the military’s media wing, Inter Service Public Relations (ISPR), said in a statement.
The deceased included an alleged “high value Taliban commander” identified as Duran, the statement said, adding that an army major also died.
The military action in Orakzai is part of a recently-launched countrywide anti-terrorism operation by Pakistan army following a spate of terror incidents across the country last month that left over 100 people dead.
Security forces claimed to have killed over 100 suspected militants nationwide in response.
Orakzai is one of the seven-semi-autonomous tribal regions in Pakistan. It is situated along the Afghan border and has been a battleground between security forces and the Pakistani Taliban militants for over a decade.
An embattled Pakistan army has launched several operations against the Pakistani Taliban groups and its allies, mainly in the restive tribal belt in recent past, including the Zarb-e-Azb (Strike of Sword in English) in 2014.
The army claims to have killed over 5,000 suspected militants since then, whereas more than 700 troops have also lost their lives in airstrikes, clashes, and landmine blasts.
The operation also displaced over a million tribesmen, bulk of them from North Waziristan tribal agency, according to the government, over 80 percent of whom have now returned to their homes.
