(MENAFN) At least 11 Pakistani security personnel, including two officers, were killed during a clash with militants in the northwest of the country, the military reported on Wednesday.

According to a statement from the military’s media wing, the incident occurred during an intelligence-based operation late Tuesday in the Orakzai district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. While 19 militants were killed in the engagement, Lieutenant Colonel Junaid Arif, 39, and Major Tayyab Rahat, 33, along with nine other security personnel, “paid the ultimate sacrifice” during the firefight.

The attack follows a similar incident last month in which at least 12 Pakistani soldiers were killed in an exchange of fire with militants in South Waziristan district. The country has witnessed a rise in militant attacks in recent years. Islamabad has accused Kabul of failing to stop Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorists from launching attacks on Pakistani soil, a claim Afghanistan denies, reaffirming its commitment not to allow its territory to be used for attacks against its neighbor.

During the Moscow Format Consultations on Afghanistan on Tuesday, Pakistan reiterated its support for a peaceful and secure Afghanistan. Pakistan’s Special Representative to Afghanistan, Mohammad Sadiq, highlighted the “urgent need for collective regional efforts to effectively counter terrorism and dismantle all terrorist groups operating from Afghan soil.”

Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi responded to recent international concerns about militant groups in Afghanistan, stating, “I wish to clearly state that no group exists in Afghanistan that uses our territory to create problems for other countries.”

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