Three terrorists belonging to the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were killed by security forces on Friday during an operation in a restive tribal district in northwest Pakistan bordering Afghanistan.

According to sources, the security forces exchanged fire with the terrorists after they fired at them in the South Waziristan tribal district.

In the shootout, three terrorists were killed and the remaining fled.

The security forces launched a massive combing operation after the gunbattle to arrest the perpetrators.

Earlier this week, six Pakistani soldiers and four terrorists were killed when the TTP militants attacked a convoy of security forces in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The outfit, which is believed to be close to Al-Qaeda, has been blamed for several deadly attacks across Pakistan, including an attack on army headquarters in 2009, assaults on military bases, and the 2008 bombing of the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad.

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