Five Terrorists Neutralized, Eight Captured in Malakand CTD Operation

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In a decisive strike, security forces in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province eliminated five terrorists and apprehended eight others in a Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) operation in Malakand district on July 19, 2025. The operation, conducted in the Mehrday area of Dargai tehsil, targeted members of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), showcasing Pakistan’s resolve to combat terrorism amid a surge in regional attacks.

The operation unfolded after intelligence reports confirmed the presence of TTP militants planning to infiltrate Mardan district via Malakand’s Mazari Baba area. Assistant Commissioner (AC) Waheedullah Khan told Dawn that police and CTD forces swiftly surrounded the area, engaging in a fierce firefight. “Five terrorists were eliminated, two were injured, and eight were captured alive,” Khan stated, noting that the detainees were taken to a CTD facility, while the injured were treated at Tehsil Headquarters Hospital Dargai. The operation’s success follows a pattern of intensified counterterrorism efforts in KP, where Pakistan ranked second in the 2025 Global Terrorism Index due to a 45% rise in terror-related deaths, totaling 1,081 last year.

The TTP, which ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022, has been linked to a wave of attacks across KP and Balochistan, including a recent operation in Hangu that killed nine terrorists, as reported by The Frontier Post. Pakistan’s security forces have ramped up efforts to dismantle such networks, with this operation marking a significant blow to the TTP’s Malakand network, including senior commander Mufti Zahir Swabi’waal, according to posts on X.