5 labourers rescued during intelligence-based operation in Kurram: ISPR

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said security personnel on Thursday rescued five labourers who were among 16 abducted by "unknown terrorists" on June 26 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Kurram District.

Following the abduction, the terrorists had released 10 out the 16 labourers on June 27, while the body of one was found, the military's media wing said in the statement.

In a bid to rescue the renaming five labourers, the security forces had launched a series of intelligence-based operations (IBO) in "highly inhospitable terrain under extreme weather conditions".

The security forces continuously tracked the terrorists and in an IBO on July 13, three terrorists were killed, while Captain Basit Ali and Sepoy Hazrat Bilal were martyred.

Finally, today — as forces continued the pursuit of terrorists — during another exchange of fire, the remaining five abducted labourers were rescued.

According to the ISPR, the operation is still underway to apprehend and eliminate the remaining terrorists, with "forces consistently endeavouring to ensure the security and well-being of innocent civilians who have wholeheartedly supported the military in the fight against terrorism".