Pakistan strikes militant hideouts on Afghan border after surge in attacks

Pakistan strikes militant hideouts on Afghan border after surge in attacks ‘Intelligence-based, selective operations’ carried out against Pakistani Taliban camps, says information ministry Pakistan carried out strikes along the border with Afghanistan on Saturday night, stating it was targeting hideouts of Pakistani militants it blames for recent attacks inside the country. Islamabad did not say in precisely which areas the strikes were carried out or provide other details. There was no immediate comment from Kabul, and reports on social media suggested the strikes were carried out inside Afghanistan. Information minister Attaullah Tarar wrote on X that the military conducted what he described as “intelligence-based, selective operations” against seven camps belonging to the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan , or TTP, and its affiliates. He said an affiliate of Islamic State was also targeted in the border region. In October, Pakistan also conducted strikes deep inside Afghanistan to target militant hideouts. Tarar said Pakistan “has always strived to maintain peace and stability in the region”, but added that the safety and security of Pakistani citizens remained a top priority. The latest development came days after a suicide bomber, backed by gunmen, rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the wall of a security post in Bajaur district in north-western Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan. The blast caused part of the compound to collapse, killing 11 soldiers and a child, and authorities later said the attacker was an Afghan national. Hours before the latest border strikes, another suicide bomber targeted a security convoy in the nearby Bannu district in the north-west, killing two soldiers, including a lieutenant colonel. After Saturday’s violence, Pakistan’s military warned it would not “exercise any restraint” and operations against those responsible would continue “irrespective of their location”, language that suggested...