ISPR: 11 Fitna al-Khawarij Militants Killed in Two North Waziristan IBOs — Day 88 of Op Ghazab lil-Haq

May 24, 2026 (Day 88 of Operation Ghazab lil-Haq): Pakistan's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) announced that security forces conducted two intelligence-based operations (IBOs) in the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan district, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KPK). After 'intense and fierce exchanges of fire,' 11 militants belonging to 'Fitna al-Khawarij' (Pakistan's official designation for TTP) were killed. ISPR stated weapons and ammunition were recovered and that sanitisation operations were continuing in the area. OPERATIONAL CONTEXT (Day 88): The Datta Khel IBOs continue the pattern of precision ground operations inside Pakistan that have replaced large-scale cross-border aerial bombardment. The last confirmed Pakistani cross-border airstrike into Afghanistan was the May 5 Dangam (Kunar) strike — now a 19-day pause. Since then, Pakistani security forces have conducted a sustained series of IBOs within Pakistani territory targeting named Fitna al-Khawarij commanders and cells: - May 17-20 (Shewa, NWaziristan): 22+ militants killed in sanitization operation - May 20 (Arjam Kali, NWaziristan): Afghan Fitna al-Khawarij commander Basir killed; Afghan accomplice arrested - May 21 (Spinwam, NWaziristan): 4 militants killed, including wanted commander Umar alias Tor Saqib (Rs3M bounty) - May 21 cumulative: ISPR announced 23 militants killed across 48-hour sweep in Datta Khel, Spinwam, and Bannu - May 24 (Datta Khel, NWaziristan): 11 militants killed in two IBOs DATTA KHEL GEOGRAPHY: Datta Khel (also written as Data Khel) is a town and tehsil in the Mir Ali subdivision of North Waziristan, approximately 45 km west of Miranshah (North Waziristan's main city). Datta Khel borders Afghanistan's Paktia province through mountain corridors historically used for cross-border fighter movement. It was a significant presence zone for both the Haqqani Network and TTP during the FATA-era conflict. INDIAN-SPONSOR FRAMING: ISPR continued to use the phrase 'Indian-sponsored Fitna al-Khawarij' in the May 24 announcement, reflecting Pakistan's sustained effort to link TTP operations to Indian intelligence services. Afghanistan's Taliban government and independent observers dispute this characterization. The framing escalated in May 2025 following the Kashmir operations and forms part of Pakistan's domestic political justification for its 'two-front' counter-terrorism posture. HUMANITARIAN CONTEXT: Three journalists remain in Taliban detention as of Day 88: Paigard News Agency head Jawid Niazi (Day 18 — detained May 6), TOLO News presenter Mansoor Niazi (Day 17 — detained May 7), and TOLO News political editor Imran Danish (Day 15 — detained May 9). No formal ceasefire has been established; no Urumqi Round 2 date has been announced; China has been silent on mediation since April 8.