ISLAMABAD: At least seven Pakistan Army soldiers, including two officers, were killed when six terrorists launched multiple suicide attacks on a security check post in the restive tribal district of North Waziristan bordering Afghanistan on Saturday, the military said.
A lieutenant colonel and a captain were killed along with five soldiers. All six terrorists who attacked the check post in Mir Ali area were shot dead, the army’s media wing said in a statement.
According to the statement, after the troops foiled the initial attempt of intrusion by unidentified terrorists, they rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the post, followed by multiple suicide bombing attacks. During the subsequent clearance operation, troops engaged and killed all six terrorists.
However, during the intense exchange of fire, Lieutenant Colonel Syed Kashif Ali and Captain Muhammad Ahmed Badar were killed, the statement said.
The military’s media wing said a sanitisation operation was being conducted to eliminate any other terrorists present in the area. No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks. However, the dreaded Pakistani Taliban have claimed several such attacks in the past.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari, in separate statements, condemned the attack. Terming the attack a “coward” move by the terrorists, Shehbaz prayed for the departed souls and offered condolences to the bereaved families.
“The security forces have foiled the sinister designs of the terrorists. I, and the whole nation, are proud of the martyrs who sacrificed lives,” he was quoted as saying by the prime minister’s office.
President Zardari condemned the terrorist attack and extended condolences to the bereaved families.