Terrorists killed in airstrikes in northwest Pakistan

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan

Pakistan Air Force jets pounded militant hideouts in the northwestern Khyber Agency tribal region near the Afghan border on Wednesday killing “many” suspected terrorists.

The aerial strikes -- part of a renewed operation against the Taliban following a recent wave of terrorism in the country -- were carried out in the remote Rajgal area, where the militants had been trying to regroup, the army’s Inter Service Public Relations said in a statement. The statement did not provide an estimate of the number of casualties.

In Karachi, police said they had killed eight suspected militants. Police Senior Supt. Rao Anwar told reporters the terrorists were killed in an operation in the eastern outskirts of the city when they refused to surrender. No further details about the operation were given.

Karachi police are often accused of killing suspects in staged clashes in order to avoid the judicial process.

In the past two weeks, more than 100 people, including security personnel, have been killed in a series of suicide bombings across the country.

An equal number of suspected militants have also been killed in airstrikes and ground operations.

The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, Daesh and affiliated groups have claimed responsibility for a number of recent attacks, including a suicide bombing at a Sufi shrine in Sindh province that killed 90 people and injured more than 300 last week.