What happened
Pakistan’s security forces killed 17 terrorists in a series of intelligence-based operations (IBOs) across Balochistan, the military’s media wing said on 2 June 2026, linking the operations to the bombing of a Quetta shuttle train on 24 May.
According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the operations were carried out in Mastung, Nushki, Zehri, Khuzdar and Kech districts. The ISPR said troops engaged multiple locations and that 17 terrorists belonging to what it called Indian-sponsored “Fitna-al-Hindustan” were killed in exchanges of fire. Weapons, ammunition, explosives and prepared improvised explosive devices were recovered, it said, adding that sanitisation operations were continuing.
The ISPR described the operations as part of the counter-terrorism campaign it calls “Azm-e-Istehkam”, approved by the federal apex committee under the National Action Plan, and said the campaign would continue to eliminate what it called foreign-sponsored terrorism.
Why it matters
The announcement followed the 24 May bombing of a Quetta shuttle train, which the state has treated as a major security breach and which was covered by KhabarWire here. The ISPR’s statement is significant because it directly connects this round of operations in five districts to that attack. Earlier operations in the province included Operation Radd-ul-Fitna-1, which the ISPR said killed 216 militants, and a sanitisation operation in Barkhan in which five security personnel, including a major, were martyred.
President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif issued separate statements praising the security forces. President Zardari called the elimination of the 17 terrorists an important achievement in the fight against militancy and said removing externally supported elements remained one of the state’s foremost priorities. Prime Minister Shehbaz said the success reflected national resolve and that counter-terrorism operations would continue until terrorism was completely eradicated, adding that the government remained fully supportive of the security forces.
The casualty figures and the characterisation of the militants as Indian-sponsored come from the ISPR and the two leaders’ offices. They have not been independently verified by KhabarWire.
