Security forces kill 5 militants in Pakistan

Karachi: At least five suspected militants were killed on Sunday in a clash with Pakistani security forces in the country’s restive Balochistan province, where a search operation is underway following a recent attack on oil tankers.
Six others were also injured besides the five militants killed during a search operation in Mastung area of the province, said Khan Wasay, a spokesman for the Frontier Corps.
The forces were backed by helicopters from the interior ministry during the search operation that was launched after five oil tankers carrying fuel for a Chinese company working on the Saindak Project in Balochistan’s Chaghi district were set ablaze on Monday.
The attackers, suspected to be Baloch separatist militants, also kidnapped four drivers of the oil tankers.
“The militants who have been killed or injured were carrying out terrorist attacks in the area and recently torched five oil tankers carrying fuel for the Saindak project in the area,” Wasay said.
The project is a joint venture between the Chinese and Pakistan government. He said the militants belonged to a banned separatist outfit.
Mastung is considered to be a sensitive district in Balochistan.
Security forces have been targets of militants in the district for over a decade, with occasional attacks on railway tracks to disrupt services and cause unrest. (PTI)