Five soldiers martyred in Kurram IED blast

RAWALPINDI: Five soldiers of Pakistan Army were martyred in a blast of Improvised Explosive Device (IED) in Kurram District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Friday.

An IED exploded on a vehicle of security forces in general area Sadda, Kurram District on Friday, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement said.

Five brave sons of soil including Havildar Aqeel Ahmed (age: 33 years, resident of District Okara), Lance Naik Muhammad Tafeer (age: 30 years, resident of District Poonch), Sepoy Anosh Rufun (age: 24 years, resident of District Attock), Sepoy Muhammad Azam Khan (age: 26 years, resident of District Haripur) and Sepoy Haroon William (age: 29 years, resident of Islamabad Capital Territory), made the ultimate sacrifice and embraced Shahadat.

The ISPR said the sanitization of the area is being carried out to eliminate any terrorists present in the area. Perpetrators of this heinous act would be brought to justice, the ISPR added.

Security forces of Pakistan are determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve, the ISPR said. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed deep grief and sorrow over the martyrdom of five soldiers of Pakistan Army in an IED blast in Kurram District.

In a statement, he condoled with the bereaved families and prayed for the higher ranks of martyrs. Shehbaz Sharif said the armed forces are determined to completely eradicate the menace of terrorism. He said the entire nation stands by the security forces.