Pakistani’s military says security forces killed 49 militants in raids in northwest and southwest

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani security forces acting on intelligence raided multiple militant hideouts in the country’s northwest and southwest, killing 49 militants, the military said Friday, as authorities intensify operations against insurgents amid a surge in militant violence.

Twelve militants were killed in separate operations this week in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan, the military said in a statement. Another 37 were killed in operations in southwestern Balochistan province.

The military described those killed as members of “ Fitna al-Khawarij ” and “Fitna al-Hindustan,” terms the government uses for the outlawed Pakistani Taliban and Baloch separatist groups, respectively.

Pakistan has accused both the Pakistani Taliban and Baloch separatists of operating from sanctuaries in Afghanistan and receiving support from India. Both Afghanistan and India deny the allegations.

The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, is a separate group but is closely allied with Afghanistan’s Taliban. Pakistan has seen a surge in violence, much of it blamed on TTP and Baloch separatist groups.

Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but least populous province, has long been the site of an insurgency by ethnic Baloch groups seeking greater autonomy or independence from Pakistan’s central government. The province, which shares a long border with Afghanistan, has also seen attacks by the TTP and the Islamic State group.