File photo. Abdul Majeed—AFP
ISPR statement says four terrorists also killed during attack on security checkpost
Four Pakistan Army soldiers were martyred late on Thursday night after terrorists opened fire on a checkpost in Makeen, South Waziristan, the military’s media wing said on Friday.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) statement praised the troops for responding promptly to the assault and shooting dead four terrorists. “During the exchange of fire, four soldiers embraced shahadat,” it said.
The martyred soldiers have been identified as Lance Naik Imran Ali, Sepoy Atif Jahangir, Sepoy Aneesur Rehman and Sepoy Aziz. “Area sanitization [is] in progress,” the ISPR statement added.
President Arif Alvi condemned the terrorist attack in a statement and expressed grief over the soldiers martyred. He conveyed his sympathies to the bereaved families and prayed for God to grant them the strength to bear the loss with fortitude. Similarly, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari offered condolences for the martyred officials and expressed solidarity with their families.
Despite an overall improvement in the country’s security situation, Pakistan has experienced a resurgence in terror attacks targeting security forces in recent weeks. Earlier this month, four terrorists were killed during an exchange of fire with security forces in the Mir Ali area of North Waziristan that also saw one soldier martyred and four others injured. Similarly, Sepoy Naseer Shaheed was martyred during an intelligence-based operation last month that also saw two terrorists killed.