Eighteen soldiers were martyred, and 12 terrorists were killed in an overnight clash in Balochistan’s Kalat, the military’s media affairs wing said in a press release.

A statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on the night 31 January/1 February, terrorists attempted to establish road blocks in general area of Mangocher, Kalat district of Balochistan.

“On behest of inimical and hostile forces, this cowardly act of terrorism was aimed at disrupting the peaceful environment of Balochistan by targeting mainly the innocent civilians.”

It said that security forces and law enforcement agencies were immediately mobilised, “who successfully thwarted the evil design of terrorists and sent twelve terrorists to hell, ensuring security and protection of the local populace”.

However, during the conduct of operations, eighteen brave sons of soil, having fought gallantly, made the ultimate sacrifice and embraced martyrdom, it said, adding that sanitisation operations were being conducted and the “perpetrators, facilitators and abettors of this heinous and cowardly act, will be brought to justice”.

It said that the security forces remain determined to thwart attempts at sabotaging the peace, stability and progress of the provinces and such sacrifices of brave soldiers further strengthened their resolve.

Pakistan has recently witnessed an uptick in terror activities, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

In a separate incident, security forces killed 10 terrorists during multiple operations in KP, the military’s media wing said yesterday.

Two soldiers were also martyred and five terrorists were killed in a foiled attack on a security checkpost in Balochistan’s Qila Abdullah district, the military’s media affairs wing said earlier this week.

Terror attacks have increased since the banned militant Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan group broke a fragile ceasefire agreement with the government. With at least 685 members of security forces losing their lives amid a total of 444 terror attacks, 2024 turned out to be the deadliest year for the civil and military security forces of Pakistan in a decade.

Equally alarming were the cumulative losses of civilians and security personnel: 1,612 fatalities, accounting for over 63 per cent of the total recorded the past year and marking 73pc more losses compared to 934 outlaws eliminated. The overall fatalities recorded last year were a record nine-year high, and over 66pc more than in 2023. On average, nearly seven lives were lost daily.