Security forces killed four terrorists in two separate operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Sunday, the military’s media wing said.

According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), an intelligence-based operation was conducted in North Waziristan District where, “after an intense exchange of fire, two khawarij including Kharji Insaf Ullah, were sent to hell.”

The ISPR added that in another operation in Khyber District, “own troops effectively engaged the khawarij location and resultantly two khawarij were killed, while three got injured”.

Weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the killed khawarij, who “remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities against the law enforcement agencies as well as the innocent civilians”, according to the ISPR.

The military’s media wing said that sanitisation operations were underway to “eliminate any other khariji found in the area”.

“[The] security forces of Pakistan are determined to wipe out the menace of terrorism from the country,” the ISPR stated.

In July, the government, through an official notification, designated the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as Fitna al Khawarij, while mandating all institutions to use the term khariji (outcast) when referring to the perpetrators of terrorist attacks on Pakistan.

On Saturday, at least eight people, including four policemen and two security officials, embraced martyrdom and several others were injured in a suicide bomb blast at a joint police and security forces checkpoint in the Eidak area of North Waziristan, officials said.

The attack took place when personnel were inspecting vehicles, they said, adding that the suicide bomber, travelling in a rickshaw, blew himself up at the Aslam checkpoint.

“Four policemen, two security personnel and two civilians have been martyred,” an official said. The injured were initially shifted to a Miramshah hospital before being airlifted to the Combined Military Hospital in Bannu district.

Police sources said several vehicles were damaged in the blast. The area was immediately cordoned off and the road was closed.

The country has witnessed a sharp uptick in the number of attacks targeting security forces, other law enforcement agencies, and security checkpoints, particularly in Balochistan and KP.

Attacks escalated after the TTP broke a fragile ceasefire agreement with the government in 2022 and vowed to target security forces.