Security forces killed 74 terrorists in intelligence-based operations across Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), the military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said on Friday.
According to an ISPR statement, the operations targeted militant hideouts in Kurram area of Quetta district, Mir Ali in North Waziristan and Orakzai district.
In Balochistan, security forces launched an intelligence-based operation in the Kurram area of Quetta district on November 3 as part of their ongoing counterterrorism campaign. The operation targeted militants belonging to what the military described as Fitna al-Khawarij and Fitna al-Hindustan.
The ISPR said troops killed 31 India-sponsored militants following several engagements. Security forces also recovered weapons, ammunition and explosives from their hideouts.
In separate operations across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, security forces killed another 43 militants over the past 48 hours.
The military said troops killed 35 militants in Mir Ali and eight in Orakzai following intense exchanges of fire. It described the operations as part of a wider campaign to dismantle militant networks and prevent terrorist attacks.
Security forces also recovered a large quantity of weapons, ammunition and explosives during subsequent clearance operations. The recovered material included homemade explosives and improvised explosive devices (IEDs), which the military said could have been used in terrorist activities.
The ISPR said sanitisation operations were continuing to eliminate any remaining militants in the affected areas. It added that security forces and law enforcement agencies would maintain their counterterrorism campaign under the Azm-e-Istehkam initiative to eliminate foreign-sponsored terrorism from the country.
Pakistan has experienced a rise in militant violence, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, since 2021, when the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan.
A report by the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) identified the two provinces as the country’s main hotspots for violence during the second quarter of 2026, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa suffering the highest number of casualties.
According to the report, KP and Balochistan together accounted for nearly 96 per cent of all violence-related deaths recorded across Pakistan during the period.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reported 475 deaths, representing more than 61 per cent of the national total, while Balochistan recorded 265 deaths, or 34 per cent.
KP also reported 151 violent incidents, accounting for 57 per cent of the nationwide total. Balochistan followed with 94 incidents, representing 35 per cent.
The figures underline the continuing security challenges facing both provinces as Pakistan intensifies efforts to counter militant networks.
