Pakistan blames Afghanistan as 12 soldiers killed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa attacks

Islamabad, Sep 13 (IANS) As many as 12 Pakistani soldiers have been killed in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in various attacks conducted by the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) outfit since September 10, the country's media reported on Saturday.

Confirming the deaths of soldiers, Pakistan military's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that they were killed during an intense fire exchange in KP's South Waziristan district in two separate engagements from September 10 to 13.

Citing the state-run Radio Pakistan, the local media mentioned that the country's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday vowed to continue responding to terrorism with "full force" after the attacks which continued on Saturday.

"Radio Pakistan reported that PM Shehbaz and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir later visited Bannu and attended a high-level meeting on counter-terrorism. It added that they also participated in the funeral prayers of the South Waziristan operation martyrs," Pakistan's leading daily Dawn reported.

Sharif was also quoted as saying that terrorist leaders and facilitators responsible for attacks in Pakistan are operating from Afghan soil.

"The Prime Minister stated that the Afghan Interim Government has been clearly told to choose between supporting the Khawarij or stand with Pakistan. He highlighted the involvement of infiltrated Afghan nationals in terrorist incidents and stressed the urgent need for the repatriation of illegal Afghan residents currently living in Pakistan," the report stated.

A report in another leading Pakistani media outlet, The Express Tribune, stated that, besides the 12 soldiers, 35 terrorists have also been killed in the retaliatory operations.

According to the local media, Sharif and Army Chief Asim Munir also visited the injured soldiers at Bannu Combined Military Hospital and received a detailed briefing on the security situation by the Peshawar Corps Commander.

Earlier this month, six soldiers were killed during an attack on the Federal Constabulary (FC) Headquarters in the Bannu district.

--IANS

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