Pakistani security forces killed 27 militants over 72 hours during a series of intelligence-based operations in the Miranshah area of North Waziristan (a tribal district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan), the military's media wing ISPR announced on Sunday. The army said the operation also avenged the May assassination of tribal elder Malik Saifullah Dawar, who had been shot dead outside his home after confronting militants occupying a local mosque. Pakistan's president and prime minister both praised the operation, reaffirming the government's commitment to eradicating what it describes as foreign-sponsored terrorism under the ongoing national security campaign known as Azm-i-Istehkam.