At least nine terrorists were killed after they attacked Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Mianwali Training Air Base in the early hours of November 4 and the attack was “foiled and thwarted”, said a statement released by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
The attack continued overnight, and the combing and clearance operation was concluded on Saturday morning. An update issued earlier stated that three terrorists were killed while entering the base and the other three had been “cornered and isolated”.
“The successful operation was launched by security forces to eliminate any potential threat in the surrounding area following the cowardly and failed terrorist attack on the base this morning,” said ISPR.
The military’s media wing added that no damage was done to “any of the PAF’s functional operational assets”, while some damage was sustained by three aircraft which were phased out and non-operational.
The early Saturday attack startled residents living close by when volleys of gunfire broke the morning silence.
“I woke up at around 3am after I heard massive gun shots which continued till around 7am,” Zeeshan Niazi, a resident of Mianwali, told Reuters.
An earlier update also mentioned that a fuel bowser was also damaged apart from the non-functional aircraft.
“The prompt and professional conclusion of the operation serves as a stark reminder to all enemies of peace that Pakistan’s Armed Forces remain vigilant and are fully capable of defending the homeland from any threat.”
Read: Three soldiers martyred, two terrorists killed in K-P clashes
“Pakistan Armed Forces remain committed to eliminating the menace of terrorism from the country at all costs,” said ISPR.
Militant group Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan (TJP) claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement sent to journalists by its spokesperson.
TJP came to the fore only this year and little is known about the group, which has carried out a string of high-profile attacks in the country, including martyring 12 soldiers at a Pakistani military base in the southwestern province of Balochistan in July.
A day earlier, at least 17 troops were martyred in different terrorist attacks in Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) provinces.
“Two vehicles of the security forces moving from Pasni to Ormara in Gwadar district were ambushed by terrorists,” the military’s media wing said in a brief statement on Friday evening. “Fourteen soldiers embraced shahadat in the unfortunate incident,” it added.
The funeral prayers of the soldiers were offered at Pasni and they would be laid to rest in their hometowns.
Senior serving military and civil administration officers and troops were in attendance.
In two other attacks in K-P, intense encounters between security forces and militants in Dera Ismail Khan and Lakki Marwat districts martyred three troops.
The clashes occurred during intelligence-based operations in the region, said ISPR.
Additional input by Reuters
