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       NORTH WAZIRISTAN / LAKKI MARWAT: At least 10 militants, including a key commander and a bomb maker, were killed in separate security operations in North Waziristan and Lakki Marwat districts, officials claimed on Monday.

       In North Waziristan, an ongoing operation by security forces in the Datta Khel area killed eight militants in the mountainous Khursin and Doga Macha regions.

       The slain militants were linked to the Hafiz Gul Bahadur and Jaish-i-Mehdi Karwan groups, including a bomb-making expert, sources claimed.

       According to sources, some militants are still in hiding, using civilians as human shields to deter strikes on their location.

       Separately in Lakki Marwat, security forces killed two militants in a clash late on Sunday night. A police official said that police and counter-terrorism units encountered terrorists near the Mangala forest during a search and strike operation.

       “When the law enforcers reached near the forest, they saw eight to ten terrorists armed with advanced weapons,” he said.

       The militants fired at police, triggering a half-hour gunfight. Afterward, two terrorists were found dead, while others fled into the dark forest.

       The law enforcers seized arms and ammunition and shifted the bodies to the THQ Hospital in Serai Naurang town.

       Also in Lakki Marwat, two relatives of a police official were wounded when terrorists attacked his home in the Mir Qalam Pull area.

       Head constable Sanaullah said in a preliminary report that his family awoke to dogs barking at midnight. When his brother, Rafaqatullah, 22, and wife, Rehana Bibi, 40, went outside their rooms, gunfire erupted.

       “In the meanwhile, an intense firing started and he immediately took position in the rooftop watchtower,” Sanaullah said.

       He saw armed men firing, injuring his brother and wife. He returned fire for twenty minutes, causing the attackers to flee. The injured were taken to a Bannu hospital, and search for the assailants was underway.

       Meanwhile, six suspected bandits injured three motorcyclists near Pasani under Serai Gambila police jurisdiction on Sunday night. Victims were riding a motorcycle when the bandits signalled them to stop with a torch. Upon not stopping, the bandits opened fire.

       The injured were taken to THQ Hospital in Serai Naurang, and a case was filed against the unidentified attackers.

       Published in Dawn, September 9th, 2025