Security forces killed four Indian-sponsored terrorists in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lakki Marwat district, the military’s media wing said on Thursday.

According to a statement by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), security forces conducted an IBO last night on the reported presence of khawarij belonging to Indian proxy Fitna al Khawarij.

Fitna al Khawarij is a term that the state uses for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan.

“During conduct of the operation, own troops effectively engaged the khawarij location and after an intense fire exchange, four khawarij were sent to hell,” ISPR said.

It added that weapons and ammunition were recovered from the slain terrorists, who “remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the area”.

It said that a sanitisation operation was being conducted to eliminate other Indian-sponsored terrorists found in the area. It said that security forces and law enforcement agencies would continue at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country.

The development comes days after a terrorist attack, involving an explosive-laden vehicle, on a checkpost in KP’s Bajaur district, martyred 11 security personnel, as per ISPR.

12 terrorists were eliminated after security forces retaliated and “engaged the fleeing khwarij with precision,” ISPR said.

KP has seen a rise in terrorist attacks in the past year. According to the Annual Security Report 2025 from the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS), KP recorded a significant surge in violence last year as “fatalities rose from 1,620 in 2024 to 2,331 in 2025”.

This marked an “absolute increase of 711 deaths, accounting for over 82 per cent of the net national rise and marking almost a 44pc year-on-year surge in violence in the province”.