Says terrorists deliberately establish hideouts in mosques to store explosive materials, also ran torture cells there
A cache of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), explosives, weapons and ammunition recovered by security forces from two terrorist hideouts inside mosques in Muzak village, North Waziristan, during an intelligence-based operation. PHOTO: ISPR
Security forces recovered a large cache of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), explosives, weapons and ammunition from two terrorist hideouts established inside mosques in North Waziristan, the military’s media wing said on Monday.
According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the operation was conducted on Sunday in Muzak village, on the southern outskirts of Mir Ali, against hideouts belonging to Indian proxy Fitna Al-Khawarij.
Fitna Al-Khawarij is the state-designated term for the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The statement said two hideouts established by the terrorists inside mosques were sanitised during the intelligence-based operation.
“The terrorists had deliberately established hideouts in Masajid to store explosive materials and also were running torture cells there,” ISPR said.
“This reprehensible desecration of places of worship by Indian proxy Fitna Al-Khawarij serves as yet another clear piece of evidence of their utter disregard for the fundamental teachings of Islam,” the statement added.
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ISPR said terrorists abetted by the Afghan Taliban have “nothing to do with Islam” and that their “perverted” interpretation and misuse of religion is “unacceptable and fully rejected” by the people of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Pakistan.
A sanitisation operation was underway by security forces to eliminate any other terrorist hideouts in the area.
It said the counter-terrorism campaign under the vision of “Azm-e-Istehkam”, approved by the Federal Apex Committee on the National Action Plan, would continue at full pace.
The statement concluded that security forces and law enforcement agencies would continue efforts to “wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country”.
Terrorism is a growing problem for Pakistan, with the number of attacks rising every year since 2022, according to Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED), a global monitoring organisation. Data from ACLED shows attacks in Pakistan rose nearly fourfold to 2,425 in 2025 from 658 in 2022.
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The scale of the threat continued to grow in 2026. Two security reports presented to the federal cabinet in October showed that terrorist incidents in K-P had increased by 195 per cent between March 2024 and September 2026.
The reports also found that 73 per cent of attacks recorded in the province during 2026 had targeted police and security personnel, while the use of drones and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) had emerged as growing threats.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Afghan Taliban authorities of allowing the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) to operate from Afghan territory and launch attacks inside Pakistan.
A United Nations Security Council monitoring report published in February 2026 supported Islamabad’s concerns, saying TTP attacks originating from Afghanistan had increased and that the group was being afforded greater liberty and support by Afghanistan’s de facto authorities.
The report also noted that Al Qaeda continued to provide training and support to TTP, while the group had acquired advanced weapons, including night-vision equipment and drone systems.
