Rawalpindi, October 11,2026: A Pakistan Army soldier was martyred while 12 Fitna al-Khawarij and Afghan Taliban personnel were killed during an attempted infiltration from Afghanistan into Kurram district, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Sunday.
According to a statement issued by the military’s media wing, security forces detected the movement of a group of khawarij attempting to approach the international border from Afghanistan on October 10 and engaged them effectively.
Despite maintaining a high state of alertness and vigilance, security forces came under fire from Afghan Taliban posts that opened fire in support of the infiltration attempt, the ISPR said.
It added that the troops’ skilful and precise engagement resulted in the killing of 12 khawarij and Afghan Taliban personnel.
However, Naib Subedar Hidayat Aman, 40, a resident of Ghizer district, embraced martyrdom during the intense exchange of fire.
The ISPR said the incident along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border reinforced Islamabad’s position that the Afghan Taliban authorities had failed to prevent terrorist organisations from using Afghan territory to launch attacks against Pakistan. It alleged that the regime had instead facilitated and patronised cross-border terrorism.
The military’s media wing further said the Afghan Taliban authorities had consistently failed to fulfil their international counterterrorism obligations.
A sanitisation operation was under way in the area to eliminate any remaining Indian-sponsored khawarij, the statement added.
Reaffirming its commitment to defending the country’s borders, the ISPR said security forces and law enforcement agencies would continue their counterterrorism campaign under the “Azm-e-Istehkam” vision, approved by the Federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan, to eliminate foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism.
The statement said the sacrifices of security personnel further strengthened Pakistan’s resolve to protect the nation and its frontiers at all costs.
The development comes two days after security forces killed seven Fitna al-Khawarij militants during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in North Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The operation was conducted against what the ISPR described as India-backed militants under the Azm-e-Istehkam vision, with several hideouts also destroyed.
