Pakistan Army gains control of Boyapul area of North Waziristan; U.S. praises North Waziristan Operation ; Taliban affiliate Tehreek-e-Khilafat pledges allegiance to ISIS, first group outside Middle East to do so; U.S. drone strike in Datta Khel kills six militants and injures two; Pakistan criticizes drone strike; Armed men attack police checkpoint and kill two in Peshawar; IED blast injures four in Bannu, North Waziristan; Armed militants attack Frontier Corps checkpoint and kill five Frontier Corps personnel in Loralai, Balochistan; Police and Rangers arrested 31,000 criminals over last 10 months in Karachi, says July 10 report.
Drone Strike
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According to BBC and Reuters, a U.S. drone strike hit the town of Datta Khel in North Waziristan on July 10. Security officials said that the strike killed at least six and injured two suspected militants 28 miles west of Miram Shah. According to Dawn, the attack targeted and destroyed a militant compound and a vehicle. The Pakistani foreign office did not confirm the drone attack and strongly criticized the use of drone attacks inside Pakistani territory.[1]
North Waziristan Offensive
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On July 10, Inter-Services Public Relations director Major General Asim Bajwa and the operation commander of the North Waziristan offensive Major General Zafar Khan told media personnel that the offensive has claimed 400 militant deaths and 130 militant injuries. Pakistani armed forces have also discovered 2,000 Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), 11 IED factories and several underground tunnels.[2]
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On July 9, Major General Zafarullah Khan, the operation commander of the North Waziristan offensive said prominent Pakistani Taliban commander Hafiz Gul Bahadur, who operates out of North Waziristan, will be shot on sight if he is discovered. Khan also confirmed that the Pakistani military found the will of former Lal Masjid cleric Abdul Rasheed Ghazi in Miram Shah, North Waziristan on July 10. Ghazi was killed in a military operation in 2007.[3]
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On July 9, Major General Zafarullah Khan said Pakistani ground troops have brought the Boyapul area of North Waziristan Agency under control as part of the army’s push west towards Datta Khel from Miram Shah.[4]
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On July 9, military officials said that the Pakistan Army had found evidence of al Qaeda’s presence in North Waziristan.[5]
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Major General Zafarullah Khan acknowledged on July 10 that the leadership from many of the militant groups in North Waziristan had fled prior to the operation’s launch. He did, however, go on to explain that measures have been taken to apprehend militants who have escaped during the IDP evacuation process.[6]
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The Pentagon announced on July 10 that it is seeing some success from Pakistan’s North Waziristan Offensive. Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby reiterated that the two countries share a common threat.[7]
Pakistani Taliban and ISIS in Iraq
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The Tehreek-e-Khilafat, a group reportedly affiliated with the Pakistani Taliban, pledged allegiance to Abu Bakr al Baghdadi and the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) on July 9, becoming the first group outside the Middle East and from Afghanistan and Pakistan to do so. The Telegraph reports that the Tehreek-e-Khilafat group is relatively unknown in Pakistan but has claimed responsibility for multiple attacks in Karachi.[8]
Militancy
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On July 10, a bomb detonated outside of the house of a local Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader on Kohat Road in Amin Colony area of Peshawar.[9]
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Armed men on motorcycles fired on a police patrol near Peshawar’s Chamkani police station on July 10, killing at least two and critically injuring three policemen. Police responded to the attack on the same day and killed one of the attackers, while one escaped.[10]
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An explosion on July 10 on Railway Road in Bannu, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa injured four civilians. Deputy Superintendent of Police Headquarters Inayat Ali Shah said that at least five to six kilograms of explosive material had been placed on a motorcycle targeting a Khasadar force vehicle and the bomb was detonated remotely. Police launched a search operation in the area immediately following the attack.[11]
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On July 10, armed militants attacked a Frontier Corps (FC) checkpoint and killed five FC soldiers in the Dukki area of Loralai district, Balochistan.[12]
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The Pakistan Army deployed troops to Alipur sub-district of Muzaffargarh, Punjab to provide enhanced security after police killed two suspected terrorists in a firefight in Alipur town area of Muzaffargarh on the night of July 8. The Express Tribune said that the terrorists belonged to al Qaeda’s Ahmed Farooq group.[13]
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According to Pakistan Railways commandos from the Special Services Group (SSG) of the Pakistan Army started deploying to stations on July 10 to provide increased security for rail passengers. Pakistan Railways also began installing CCTV cameras and metal detectors at stations as part of recent enhanced security efforts.[14]
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Bomb disposal squad personnel defused three improvised explosive devices (IEDs) planted in a house in Faqeer Kalay area of Peshawar on July 9. In the same area on the night of July 8, armed men on motorcycles fired on and injured an officer. During an investigation of the attack, police identified the attacker and raided his residence, discovering a large quantity of explosives, an IED, two grenades, and other bomb making equipment. Bomb disposal squad personnel later defused the bombs. Police told The Frontier Post that the arrested man is a member of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and is wanted for assassinations and other crimes.[15]
Karachi Security Operation
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A report published on July 10 documenting enhanced security operations in Karachi stated that over the last 10 months police and Rangers arrested 31,336 alleged criminals across the city. The operation has also led to the recovery of 643 hand grenades, 3 light machine guns, 186 sub-machine guns, 7,201 pistols, 116 rifles, 125 shotguns, 1,026 explosive materials, and a large quantity of drugs and narcotics.[16]