12 Pakistan soldiers killed in militants’ ambush

Pakistani security forces raided two hideouts of the Pakistani Taliban near the Afghan border in the past two days, triggering fierce clashes that killed 12 soldiers and 35 militants, the military said Saturday.

The death toll underscores the struggles Pakistan faces as it tries to rein in resurging militant groups. The military said 22 militants were killed in the first raid in Bajaur, a district in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Thirteen more were killed in a separate operation in South Waziristan district, the military said. The statement said that the 12 soldiers, "having fought gallantly, paid the ultimate sacrifice and embraced martyrdom” in South Waziristan.

The militants are using Afghan soil to stage attacks in Pakistan, the military said, urging the Taliban government in Kabul "to uphold its responsibilities and deny use of its soil for terrorist activities against Pakistan.”

The military described the killed militants as "Khwarij,” a term the government uses for the Pakistani Taliban, and alleged they were backed by India though it offered no evidence for the allegation. Pakistan has long accused India of supporting the Pakistani Taliban and separatists in Baluchistan, charges that New Delhi denies.

There was no immediate comment from the Taliban in Kabul or from New Delhi.

Pakistan has faced a surge in militant attacks in recent years, most claimed by the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP. The group is separate from the Afghan Taliban but is closely allied with them.

TTP has become emboldened since the Afghan Taliban seized power in Kabul in 2021, with many of the Pakistani Taliban leaders and fighters finding sanctuary across the border.

Associated Press