Six soldiers and eight rebels killed in fighting in northwest Pakistan | Pakistani Taliban News

The army says a senior officer is among those killed in two incidents of clashes between the military and rebels.

Six Pakistani soldiers and at least eight rebels were killed in two clashes in the restive northwest, the military said.

The military's media wing said on Saturday that Lt. Col. Muhammad Ali Shoukat, along with six rebels, were among six soldiers killed in night clashes in North Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

“Pakistan security forces are determined to eradicate the threat of terrorism and the sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve,” Inter-Services Public Relations said.

The army said it killed two militants in Swat, another district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in a separate operation. One of them is said to have been involved in an attack on a convoy of foreign ambassadors in the region this month.

The Interior Ministry reported that in 2023 alone, 930 people, mostly security personnel, lost their lives and around 2,000 were injured due to “acts of terrorism”.

In March, an armed group attacked a military post in North Waziristan with a vehicle loaded with explosives and suicide vests, killing seven security force members.

North Waziristan has long served as a base for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, also known as the Pakistan Taliban, and other groups. The army declared several years ago that it had cleared the region of rebel groups. However, occasional attacks continued, raising concerns that the Pakistani Taliban was regrouping in the region.

The Pakistani Taliban is a separate group from the Afghan Taliban, but the two are allies.

The Afghan Taliban seized power in Afghanistan for a second time in 2021, as the United States and other NATO forces were in the final stages of their withdrawal from the country.

Since then, the Pakistani Taliban have intensified their attacks on security forces, particularly in the northwest.