KOHAT: At least six terrorists were killed in a joint operation carried out by the Counter Terrorism Department and police in the Lachi area of Kohat on Sunday, officials said.

District Police Officer Shehbaz Elahi said the operation was conducted on intelligence information and that weapons were recovered from the killed militants.

He added that the area had been cordoned off while a search operation was underway to ensure the presence of any remaining suspects.

The operation comes amid heightened security measures in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa following a surge in militant attacks.

A day earlier, the Counter Terrorism Department carried out another intelligence-based operation in the region that resulted in the killing of suspected militants. The action followed a deadly blast near a police vehicle in the Bettani tribal area of Lakki Marwat, which martyred seven police personnel.

Pakistan has seen a rise in cross-border militant activity in recent years, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, which share borders with Afghanistan.

In response to the growing threat, Pakistan launched Operation Ghazab lil-Haq targeting militant hideouts along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.

According to Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, at least 663 Afghan Taliban fighters have been killed and more than 887 injured during the operation, while 249 militant checkposts were destroyed, 44 captured and 224 tanks, armoured vehicles and artillery guns eliminated.

Security sources said Pakistan also carried out airstrikes on militant camps belonging to Fitna al Khawarij and Islamic State – Khorasan Province in Afghanistan’s provinces of Nangarhar, Paktika and Khost, killing more than 80 militants.