Three army officers and a soldier were martyred on Friday in an improvised explosive device (IED) explosion in North Waziristan. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that four other soldiers also sustained injuries in the attack that targeted their vehicle. The martyred soldiers were identified as Lt Col Raashid Karim Baig, a resident of Karimabad, Hunza; Major Moeez Maqsood Baig, a resident of Karachi; Capt Arif Ullah, a resident of Lakki Marwat; and Lance Havaldar Zaheer, a resident of Chakwal. “This is the same area where forces had conducted search operations and arrested [a] few facilitators,” the ISPR statement said. Last Saturday, a soldier was martyred when a Pakistan Army vehicle was attacked in the Boyya area of North Waziristan. According to the ISPR, the vehicle came under direct fire and was also targeted by an IED while conducting a routine security patrol in the area. Sepoy Amil Shah embraced martyrdom in the attack. Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the attack on military personnel in Kharqamar and offered his condolences to the families of martyrs. He also prayed for the early recovery of the army personnel injured in the blast. The premier paid tribute to the forces for their sacrifices and noted that some anti-state elements were inciting the residents of tribal districts to violence. However, he added, the state would not allow these elements to succeed in their nefarious designs. 2 soldiers martyred in Balochistan: Two Frontier Corps (FC) soldiers were martyred in Balochistan’s Harnai district, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Thursday. “Terrorists targeted FC troops during their patrolling on Eid security duties,” the ISPR stated. The martyred soldiers are: Sepoy Yar Muhammad, 23, of Kuch District in Sibi and Sepoy Mehtab Khan, 19, from Laki Marwat. The area has been cordoned off and a search operation has begun. Balochistan Levies officials said a blast from an improvised explosive device (IED) occurred at around 8:30am in Harnai’s Khost tehsil. “The personnel were bringing water from the stream where the IED was planted,” officials said. The bodies have been taken to District Headquarter Hospital (DHQ) Harnai. The deputy commissioner of Harnai and superintendent of police also visited the site of the incident. In February, two FC personnel were martyred while a civilian passerby was injured in a firing incident in Balochistan’s Loralai city.