4 terrorists killed, over 600 arrested: Pakistan Army

Four terrorists were killed and 600 suspects arrested during an ongoing antiterrorism operation, the Pakistan Army has said.

The army last week launched “Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad” — an Arabic word which translates roughly to elimination of discord - across the country to eliminate terrorists and consolidate gains of its counter-terrorism operations. The drive came days after a wave of suicide attacks killed more than 125 people, including 91 at a Sufi shrine in Sindh. An important part of the operation was deployment of the Rangers in Punjab province to counter terrorism.

The army’s media wing said Punjab Rangers conducted more than 200 search operations in various areas of Punjab including Karor, Layyah and Rawalpindi and arrested 600 suspects, including Afghan nationals.

Four suspected terrorists were killed in an exchange of fire with security personnel, it said.

During the operation, the paramilitary force searched suspected houses, seminaries and shops, the statement said.

Some suspects belonging to Jamat-u-Ahrar (JuA), believed to be facilitators in the recent terror attacks in the country, are also among the arrested suspects.

Pakistan’s military spokesman Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor earlier said the operation is aimed at “indiscriminately eliminating residual and latent threat of terrorism, consolidating gains of operations made thus far and further ensuring security of the borders.”