Pakistani security forces exchanged fire with terrorists in the restive North Waziristan tribal district bordering Afghanistan, killing a least three soldiers and three militants, the Army said on Sunday.

The shootout took place in the Miranshah area of the district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province overnight early on Saturday, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military's media wing, said in a statement.

Four terrorists were also injured during the gun battle, ISPR said.

The security forces seized arms and ammunition from the possession of the slain terrorists and launched a sanitisation operation to eliminate any other militant found in the area.

Although the Pakistani military claims it has cleared North Waziristan of militants, occasional attacks and shootouts continue, raising concerns that the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which earlier had a stronghold in the district, are regrouping in the area.

The TTP is a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in Afghanistan on August 15, 2021, as the US and NATO forces withdrew from the country after two decades of war.

The TTP unilaterally ended a cease-fire agreement with the Pakistani government last November and has since stepped up its attacks in the country.

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