Pakistani security forces have killed 23 fighters in two separate raids near the Afghan border as tensions simmer between Pakistan and neighbouring Afghanistan and India.

Forces launched a “targeted operation” on Wednesday in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Kurram District, the military said in a statement on social media, referring to the fighters as “khawarij”, the term it uses for banned groups, including the Pakistan Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The raid led to an “intense” exchange of fire, killing 12 people. No Pakistani military casualties were reported.

Forces then raided another location in the same “general area” and killed 11 more people, the military said.

The killings add to more than 30 that the military has reported throughout the week as

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