Balochistan IED explosion claims the lives of five Pakistani soldiers.

QUETTA – In the Kahan region of Balochistan, an improvised explosive device (IED) exploded on Sunday as the Army was conducting an intelligence-based clearance operation, killing five soldiers, including a captain and four sepoys.

“Captain Fahad along with four other brave sons of soil Lance Naik Imtiaz, Sepoy Asghar, Sepoy Mehran, and Sepoy Shamoon have embraced Shahadat, laying their lives in defence of the motherland against an externally perpetrated threat of terrorism,” Inter-Service Public Relations (ISPR) stated in a press release.

The statement said, “The operation was underway in the Kahan area of Balochistan since 24 Dec 2022.

Earlier, during a fierce gun battle with militants in the Sambaza neighbourhood of Zhob, Balochistan, one soldier was killed and two more were hurt.

The Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement that for the past 96 hours, an operation had been underway in the region to prevent terrorists from using a few known routes to cross the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, enter Khyber Pakhtunkhwa along the interprovincial border, and target residents and security personnel.
A group of terrorists was intercepted in the early hours of today as a result of ongoing surveillance and area sanitization. Terrorists started shooting at the Security Forces while blocking positions were being set up to cut off their escape routes, according to the statement.

One terrorist was killed in the gunfight, while Haq Nawaz chose death and two other soldiers were hurt. Through fire, the facilitators of the terrorists from the other side of the border also provided help.

The ISPR stated that the “sanitization operation” was still ongoing to catch any remaining offenders.

Political figures have praised the army’s anti-terrorism actions. Asif Ali Zardari, a former president, claimed that our military troops were doing everything possible to thwart terrorists’ attempts to undermine the peace. He said, “They are our hero.”

Bilawal Bhutto, the minister of external affairs, also paid respect to the troops who gave their lives to protect the nation. The FM condemned the attacks and stated that the sons of the soil were devoting their energy to preventing terrorism.

President Dr. Arif Alvi, on the other hand, expressed sympathy to the families of the victims and praised the martyrs for their contributions to national defence.

He was grateful for what the security forces were doing to rid the nation of terrorists.

He prayed for the martyrs in Jannah to receive the highest rankings.