The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) said on Saturday that a wanted terrorist was killed during an intelligence-based operation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district.

According to a CTD statement, the slain terrorist was identified as Khalid alias Commander, who was wanted in multiple cases, including the targeted killing of CTD Constable Muhammad Ali, who was martyred on March 17, 2025.

The department said that it had received confirmed intelligence through its technical team that Khalid was present in the Korai area within the limits of Shorkot police station.

Acting on the information, a CTD Special Weapons and Tactics team launched a targeted intelligence-based operation early on Saturday on the Tank-Dera Ismail Khan Road, the statement said.

“During the operation, the terrorist was surrounded, told to surrender several times and attempts were made to arrest him. However, instead of surrendering, he opened indiscriminate fire on personnel,” the statement said. It added that he was killed as the CTD retaliated.

The statement said that the slain terrorist was affiliated with the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan’s Zakir Kochi Karwan group. It also said that he had been evading law enforcement agencies by concealing his identity, frequently changing his appearance and moving between locations.

The CTD said a 9mm pistol, a hand grenade and a smartphone were recovered from his possession and taken into custody for forensic examination.

It added that efforts were underway to identify and take legal action against his facilitators, financiers and logistical support network.

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”.