Pakistan’s security forces have killed a notorious militant commander responsible for numerous terrorist attacks in the contested northern region of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) during a shootout on Thursday, according to top government officials.
GB Home Minister, Shams Lone stated that the operation was intelligence-based. The shootout, which lasted for several hours, has created a tense atmosphere in the area.
Pakistan has ramped up its nationwide counter-terrorism efforts following Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif’s recent announcement of a military crackdown on terrorism and extremism after a high-level security meeting.
“Terrorist commander Shah Faisal was killed during an intelligence-based security operation in the Darel Valley of GB’s Diamer district, while his accomplice, Zahidullah, was injured,” Lone reported. He did not disclose the militant group the slain commander belonged to but confirmed that Faisal was the mastermind behind the terrorist attack in the Chilas region last December, where militants opened fire on a bus on the Karakoram Highway, killing nine people and injuring 21.
Faizullah Faraq, spokesperson for GB’s administration, stated that security has been heightened on the Karakoram Highway and in Gilgit city following the incident. The operation was initiated after three facilitators of the militants responsible for the bus attack were arrested and interrogated, revealing the identities of those involved in the Chilas attack.
