Huge blow for Pakistan army in North Waziristan; 5 soldiers killed in fight with Afghan militants

Peshawar: At least five Pakistani soldiers and four terrorists were killed in a shootout when the security forces raided a militant hideout in a tribal district in a former Taliban stronghold near the border with Afghanistan, the Army said on Tuesday.

The Army conducted an operation based on prior intelligence on Monday in the Boyya area of North Waziristan district, according to a statement released by ISPR, the media wing of the Pakistani military.

During an intense exchange of fire between the Army troops and terrorists, four terrorists were killed.

The Army also lost five soldiers, including a Captain, it said. Sanitisation of the area was being carried out to eliminate any other terrorists in the area.

“Pakistan Army is determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers will not go unpunished,” the Inter Service Public Relations (ISPR) said.

Military convoys often come under attack in the restive Northwest region of Pakistan.

In July this year, at least eight Pakistani soldiers were injured when a suicide bomber rammed his bike on a military convoy in the country's restive North Waziristan, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in the country’s restive Northwestern region.

Terrorists and separatists have been regularly carrying out attacks on security forces and government officials in the volatile province, which has seen the heavy loss of lives and government security installations since last year.