Militants attack Pak Air Force training base, 3 aircraft damaged

Heavilyarmed militants attacked a Pakistan Air Force training base in Punjab province early Saturday damaging three grounded aircraft the army said a day after 15 soldiers were killed in two separate terror strikesIn a statement the Pakistan Army said that the Mianwali Training Air Base of Pakistan Air Force was attacked by terrorists but soldiers foiled it by killing three of the attackers and cornering three othersHowever during the attack some damage to three already grounded aircraft and a fuel bowser also occurred the statement saidNo group has claimed responsibility for the attackThe army said that three terrorists were neutralised while entering the base while the remaining three terrorists have been corneredisolated due to timely and effective response by the troopsA comprehensive joint clearance and combing operation is in the final stages to completely clear the area it saidPakistan Armed Forces remain committed to eliminating the menace of terrorism from the country at all costs the army saidThe attack comes hours after a series of terror strikes killed at least 15 soldiers in the restive Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincesFourteen Pakistani soldiers were killed on Friday when militants ambushed two vehicles carrying security forces from Pasni to the Ormara area of Gwadar district in the restive southwestern Balochistan provinceFridays toll is the heaviest suffered by the military in Balochistan province this year where separatists and militants have stepped up their attacks since a ceasefire deal between the TehreekeTaliban Pakistan TTP and the Pakistan government ended in November 2022Hours before the Gwadar attack a series of bomb blasts targeting convoys of police and security forces killed six people including a soldier and wounded 24 others in the Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinceThroughout the year terrorists and separatists have been targeting security forces in Pakistan mainly troubled Balochistan province Two soldiers were killed in the Khoro area of Awaran district last SundayIn July 12 soldiers were killed in separate military operations in the Zhob and Sui areas of BalochistanPakistan has been facing a rise in violence in the wake of the Taliban getting power in Afghanistan in August 2021According to a Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies PICSS report issued in September Pakistan suffered 99 attacks in August the highest number in a single month since November 2014 The number of militant attacks in August was the highest tally for monthly strikes in almost nine yearsThe Gwadar district has seen the highest number of attacks in recent months and in August separatists belonging to the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army attacked a convoy of 23 Chinese engineers in the port town of GwadarThe Centre for Research and Security Studies CRSS a think tank in a report released in October noted that the security forces lost at least 386 personnel in the first nine months of 2023 marking an eightyear highKhyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan were the primary centres of violence accounting for nearly 94 per cent of all fatalities and 89 per cent of attacks including incidents of terrorism and security forces operations recorded during this periodThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever