Pakistan security forces have killed five terrorists and rescued 23 abducted people during a security operation in the country’s troubled Balochistan province, authorities said on Sunday (September 20, 2026).

The incident occurred on the night between Friday (September 18, 2026) and Saturday (September 19, 2026), when the terrorists tried to disrupt the movement of people along the Chaman-Karachi section of the N-25 highway near Kalat.

In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the Pakistan Army, said the terrorists had set up a check post to abduct people for ransom, extort money and snatch vehicles. The security forces responded immediately and, after an intense exchange of fire, killed five terrorists, it said.

The forces also rescued 23 abductees from the terrorists’ hideout, where six trucks, three buses and two cars were recovered along with a large cache of weapons, ammunition and explosives.

The ISPR said clearance operations were continuing in the surrounding areas to eliminate any remaining terrorists and ensure the safety of the local population and key highways. It said the campaign against terrorism would continue with full resolve, and the forces were committed to eliminating what it described as foreign-sponsored and foreign-supported terrorism from the country.

Balochistan has been facing security challenges and terrorism, prompting the security forces to intensify counter-terrorism operations. The number of terrorist attacks in the province increased by 7% to 89 in August from 83 in July, according to a monthly assessment by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS).

The ISPR and the state media have reported several operations in the province in recent weeks.

Five terrorists were killed in operations conducted by security forces in Pakistan’s restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the army said on Saturday (May 9, 2026).

Based on intelligence reports, the security forces initiated two separate operations in the Tank and Dera Ismail Khan districts on May 7 and 8, it said in a statement.

Four terrorists belonging to the banned Teh­reek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were killed in the military engagement in the Tank district, the statement said.

In Dera Ismail Khan, another TTP member was killed in an exchange of fire with the security forces.

Weapons and ammunition have also been recovered from the possession of the slain terrorists, the statement said.

Pakistan has witnessed a surge in terrorist attacks, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces, predominantly targeting the police, law enforcement agencies’ personnel, and security forces.

Attacks increased after the banned TTP broke a ceasefire agreement with the government in 2022.

Security forces killed 23 Taliban militants in two separate engagements in northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan, the Army said on Thursday (November 20, 2025).

The troops gunned down 12 militants belonging to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) during the conduct of the operation in Kurram district in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the Army said in a statement.

The operations conducted on the reported presence of militants in the Kurram district were an expansion of operations started on Wednesday (November 19, 2025).

Based on the intel, another operation was conducted in the same area, neutralising 11 other TTP militants.

“Capitalising on intelligence with respect to the presence of another group of Khwarij in the same general area in another intelligence-based operation, the troops successfully neutralised eleven more Khwarij,” the statement added.

The Pakistan government last year notified the banned TTP as “Fitna al-Khawarij,” a reference to a group in earlier Islamic history which was involved in violence.

In a separate incident, a man and his four-year-old son were killed when a mortar shell landed near their house in Tirah Valley, bordering Afghanistan, on Wednesday, police said on Thursday (November 20, 2025).

Meanwhile, in South Waziristan, security forces recovered 16 improvised explosive devices (IEDs) during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in the Birmal tehsil on Wednesday (November 20, 2025).

Officials said the explosives were likely intended for attacks against civilians.

In Lakki Marwat, TTP commander Wali, alias Woloo Kakakhel, was captured alive by unidentified men on Thursday (November 20, 2025).