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Khyber Agency air strikes leave 20 terrorists dead

In the strikes several militant hideouts were also destroyed.

Islamabad: Twenty terrorists including some of their ‘important’ commanders were killed in precise aerial strikes in the remote areas of Khyber Agency on Friday, the military said in a statement.

Further, there were also reports of about 18 terrorists being injured in the strikes.

The strikes come days after 20 suspected militants were killed in North Waziristan Agency near the Pak-Afghan border.

In the strikes several militant hideouts were also destroyed.

The deeply forested areas near the border are a key smuggling route between Pakistan and Afghanistan, and are dotted with Taleban bases, used as launch pads for attacks on Pakistani forces. The precise aerial strikes came amid the ongoing Khyber-2 operation launched by the army in the tribal region and are part of the military’s stepped-up efforts since a militant attack in December 2014 killed over 140 people, mostly children, at Peshawar’s Army Public School.

The area is remote and off-limits to journalists, making it difficult to verify the army’s claims.

Pakistan has been battling a homegrown insurgency for over a decade following the late 2001 US-led invasion of Afghanistan. The army began a major campaign against Taleban and other militant strongholds in the North Waziristan tribal area in June last year.

Authorities have since vowed to intensify operations, using air strikes, artillery and mortars to take back territory both in the border regions and other parts of the country.

news@khaleejtimes.com