Khyber District: In a deadly escalation of violence, eight militants, including a senior commander of the banned Lashkar-e-Islam group, were killed during fierce clashes with security forces in the Maidan area of Tirah Valley, Khyber District. The firefight also claimed the lives of eight security personnel.
Sources identified the martyred personnel as:
However, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) has not yet confirmed these casualties.
The intense exchange of fire, which began around 11 AM today, continues unabated. Militants reportedly evacuated their wounded comrades and retrieved the bodies of their dead. They also seized homes near Bagh Bazaar, using them as positions to fire on security camps and a nearby police station.
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In retaliation, both sides have engaged in heavy shelling, with mortar fire destroying seven shops in Bagh Bazaar.
The Tirah Valley has seen worsening law and order in recent months. On November 13, an unsettling incident occurred when Zarshed, a water carrier for security personnel at the Bhutan Sharif post, was ambushed in Bara’s Bar Qambar Khel area. Assailants shot him dead and set his tanker ablaze.
Earlier, on November 6, a mortar shell reportedly hit schoolchildren in Bhutan Sharif, killing student Abidullah and his sister, while injuring four others. While some sources attributed the incident to a mortar shell fired from an unknown direction, locals speculated it might have been a drone strike.
In the wake of these incidents, local tribes convened a grand jirga to address the deteriorating security situation. The jirga formed a 60-member committee to consult Afridi tribes on a collective strategy against terrorism and unrest in the region.
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