Army says operation to be extended to Kurram

Tuesday, December 01, 2009 Nasrullah Afridi BARA: The ongoing operation in Khyber and Orakzai tribal regions will be extended to neighbouring Kurram Agency to crush militants and miscreants. Briefing reporters about the operation ‘Khwakh Ba De Sham’ (I will fix you) at Fort Salop camp on Monday, Sector Commander Brigadier Fayyaz Mehmood said that 61 militants had been killed and 87 arrested while 27 vehicles owned by insurgents were destroyed during the ongoing operation in Bara tehsil of Khyber tribal region so far. “We have broken the back of militants and made Peshawar and other parts of the country safe and secure because of the decisive operation in Bara subdivision in Khyber and Ferozkhel area of Orakzai Agency,” Brigadier Fayyaz said, adding that militants were on the run as they could not face the security forces. He said the security forces had secured the strongholds of militants in Chappari Ferozkhel in Orakzai and Gurguri area in Khyber Agency. The officer added that the Khyber Agency-based banned outfit Lashkar-e-Islam (LI) chief Mangal Bagh was hiding in the mountains of tribal regions but he would not be spared. He said the operation would continue till complete elimination of militants from the region. Meanwhile, the security forces arrested 67 suspected persons during search operation in Sipah area in Bara tehsil on Sunday. The sources said that the security forces carried search operation in Sipah area on the second day of Eidul Azha and arrested 67 suspected persons. Hazrat Khan of banned LI, chief of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Khyber Agency chapter Shah Faisal Afridi and president of Khidmat-e-Khalq Committee Ikhtiar Badshah Afridi were among the arrested persons. The security forces also seized an abandoned vehicle that was packed with explosives in Kamarkhel area in Bara tehsil. The security forces later torched the vehicle which exploded with a huge blast.

source: http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=211011