Information Minister Says 182 Taliban Checkpoints Destroyed; Pakistani forces take control of 31 more posts
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar addresses a press conference in Islamabad on Friday. – SCREENSHOT
ISLAMABAD:
Security forces killed 415 Afghan Taliban in a major military operation launched in response to “unprovoked cross-border attacks” from Afghanistan, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Sunday.
According to the Federal Minister of Information, 415 Afghan Taliban have been killed and 580 injured so far during the operation. It said 182 Taliban checkpoints had been completely destroyed, while Pakistani forces had taken control of 31 additional posts.
The minister described the response as decisive and said operations were continuing as planned.
The information minister further claimed that 115 Afghan Taliban tanks, armored vehicles and artillery guns were destroyed during the fighting.
He added that the air operations had effectively targeted 46 sites across Afghanistan. Security sources said that on February 28, in broad daylight, Pakistani troops crossed the border fence from North Waziristan towards a central Taliban post.
According to the sources, the Afghan personnel fled after spotting the advancing Pakistani forces, after which the central post was recaptured. During the operation, enemy compounds were cleared and their flags removed.
Separately, security sources said an Afghan checkpoint in the Kurram sector was also targeted. The post was destroyed using explosives and several Afghan personnel were reportedly killed.
Sources added that the Afghan Taliban regime was facing setbacks on several fronts and asserted that the operation would continue until its objectives were achieved.
