ISLAMABAD, Oct 17 (APP): An air and ground offensive has been launched to flush out 1500-odd, mostly foreign, terrorists from the South Waziristan Agency which had become breeding ground for 80 % terrorist activities in the country, Director General Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Athar Abass said on Saturday. “The headquarters of the defunct Tehrik-e-Taliban in the agency will be surgically targeted to dismantle the network of the terror outfit,” he said in a Radio programme.

He said that about 1500 foreign terrorists are present in the area which has been besieged by the security forces by closing down all the linking roads.

Quoting various intelligence reports, he said that around 80 % terrorist incidents in parts of the country originated from South Waziristan.  

Meanwhile, the ISPR revealing latest reports from South Waziristan, said that terrorists fired at Razmak Camp leaving two soldiers injured while 10 rockets were fired at security forces check post near Saeed camp, in which another two soldiers sustained injuries. 

During exchange of fire between security forces and terrorists, two soldiers embraced Shahadat while 4 others got injured at Mandana.

In a separate incident, terrorists fired at security forces check post, during which two soldiers embraced Shahadat and 4 were injured.

In their desperation after Baitullah Mehsud was killed in a drone attack on August 5, 2009, alleged Taliban-linked terrorists had stepped up attacks on government installations especially offices of law enforcement forces across the country in recent days.

The well-planned attack on GHQ and then strikes in quick succession in Lahore, Kohat, Peshawar and Quetta claimed several precious lives of security personnel besides taking of several persons as hostage necessitated a decisive operation on the Taliban in South Waziristan.

Top political and Army leadership of the country met on Oct 16, with representatives of main political parties present to make a final decision to root out the menace of terrorism once and for all by taking on the terrorists of South Wziristan who were threatening the country’s integrity.

The meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani, was attended by political party leaders or their representatives, who were apprised by Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani and Director General ISI Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha about the threats and the measures to counter the menace of terrorism.

The government had worked on several options to tackle these subversive elements in South Waziristan, even reaching agreements with them, but all went in vain.

The last major operation against the Taliban in South Waziristan took place in late January 2008.

Prior to the military’s offensive, the Taliban overran two military forts and conducted numerous attacks against Pakistani forces.