Five terrorists belonging to Indian-sponsored Fitna al-Khawarij were killed in two separate intelligence-based operations (IBOs) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Friday.

According to the military’s media wing, the operations were carried out during the night of May 7 and 8 in the districts of Tank and Dera Ismail Khan following reports regarding the presence of militants in the areas.

In its official statement, ISPR said security forces launched an intelligence-based operation in Tank district where troops effectively engaged the militants’ location.

“During conduct of the operation, own troops effectively engaged khwarij location and after intense exchange of fire, four khwarij, belonging to Indian-sponsored Fitna-al-Khwarij were sent to hell,” the statement said.

The military said another intelligence-based operation was conducted in Dera Ismail Khan district, where one terrorist was killed during an exchange of fire.

ISPR added that weapons and ammunition were recovered from the killed militants, who had been actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the region.

The military’s media wing said sanitisation operations were continuing to eliminate any remaining militants in the area.

It added that Pakistan’s security forces and law enforcement agencies would continue counterterrorism operations under the “Azm-e-Istehkam” vision approved by the Federal Apex Committee under the National Action Plan framework.

The statement said the campaign would continue “at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country.”

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif praised the security forces for the successful operations and commended them for killing five militants.

The prime minister said security forces were achieving major successes in the fight against terrorism and reiterated that the entire nation stood alongside the armed forces.

“We will not rest until terrorism is completely eradicated from the country,” he said.

Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also lauded the security forces for the operations and praised their capabilities.

Naqvi said operations against “Indian-sponsored terrorists” would continue until the last militant was eliminated, adding that the nation valued the sacrifices and successes of the security forces in the fight against terrorism.