Pakistan said on Tuesday that a counter-terrorism strike in a volatile district on the border with Afghanistan had killed at least six soldiers and four “terrorists” in the clashes that followed the attack.
The troops “effectively struck a terrorist site” in South Waziristan and wounded two other insurgents, according to the Pakistan army’s media wing.
The outlawed Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, claimed responsibility for the casualties, saying the exchange of fire occurred after its fighters ambushed a military convoy in the remote district. The insurgent groups claim far higher casualties on the part of the Pakistani army, but they often issue exaggerated claims.
Pakistani officials claim that fugitive TTP commanders have shifted their bases to Afghanistan and intensified acts of cross-border terrorism since the Taliban took back control of the country two years ago.
On Sunday (20/8), a bomb blast hit a vehicle transporting workers to a police station in the volatile North Waziristan district adjacent to South Waziristan. Officials confirmed that 11 workers died in the incident.
The Afghan Taliban authorities reject the accusations, saying they do not allow any group to use their land to fight other countries, including Pakistan. (lt/ka)
