A policeman was martyred while two terrorists were killed during an attack on the Kundal patrolling post in Mianwali on Sunday, Punjab police chief Usman Anwar said in a statement.

“Kundal Punjab Highway Patrolling Post, in an operation assisted by the Counter Terrorism Department Punjab, successfully thwarted an attack by 12 to 15 terrorists last night at approximately 23:45 hours,” he stated.

As stated in the statement, Head Constable Haroon was martyred during the operation, which concluded after 7am.

“Two terrorist bodies were discovered after the CTD personnel conducted a thorough search of the area,” the stated added.

A comprehensive database and local intelligence have positively identified one of the terrorists as Zubair Nawaz, brother of Arshad Nawaz, the Ameer of the Tehreek-Taliban Tipu Group of Lakki Marwat.

He was a “high priority individual on both Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s most wanted lists for his involvement in the killing of police officers, Shia community members, dacoities, and extortion activities”.

The second terrorist, the statement highlighted, was identified as Muhammad Khan who was a “dedicated member of the group” and “proved to be more dangerous than Zubair”.

Mohsin Naqvi, interim chief minister of Punjab, praised the provincial police force for thwarting the attack.

“Haroon, the martyred officer, is a national hero,” he said.

Former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack and paid tribute to the martyred officer.

“In the war against terrorism, Punjab Police is playing the role of vanguard, whose officers and men have foiled several terrorist attacks by risking their lives … salute your bravery and commitment,” he said.