At least eight terrorists from a banned organisation were killed on Tuesday during a joint operation by police and the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) in the Daraish Khel area of Karak, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the private media channel reported.
Earlier in the day, militants from the banned outfit attacked a police van in the Gurguri area of Karak district, killing five policemen, Karak police spokesperson Shaukat Khan said. After the attack, authorities sent reinforcements to the area.
Karak police and the CTD then launched a joint operation to pursue the attackers. During a gunfight in the nearby hills, security forces killed eight militants.
District Police Officer (DPO) Saud Khan said authorities moved the bodies of the militants to a hospital for post-mortem examination and started the identification process.
He said the sacrifice of the martyred police officers would not go in vain and added that police would continue to make every sacrifice needed to maintain peace. He also said such cowardly attacks would not weaken the morale of the police.