Islamabad: A Pakistani army major was killed during an Intelligence-Based Operation (IBO) in Khyber's Shakas district, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement on Thursday, ARY News reported.

According to the army's media wing, the incident occurred when security forces launched the operation in the intervening night of July 5-6 in the area after they received information about the presence of terrorists.

The army major was identified as Major Shah, a 33-year-old resident of Kohat.

An official statement read, "While the establishment of blocking positions to cut the escape routes of terrorists was underway, a party of terrorists was spotted by Major Abdullah who was leading the operation from the front", reported ARY News.

ISPR further said that when the forces tried to intervene, there was a heavy exchange of fire resulting in the killing of the army major.

Later, the security forces arrested three terrorists and their facilitators while a sanitisation operation was underway to eliminate any more terrorists in the area, the military's media wing added, according to ARY News.

"Security forces of Pakistan are determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism, and such sacrifices of our soldiers further strengthen our resolve," the ISPR said.

The incident comes on the heels of a similar operation in which three terrorists were killed in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region of Dera Ismail Khan, Dawn reported citing the military's media affairs wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on Sunday.

Further, as per the military's media wing, a vehicle-borne suicide bomber detonated his device in the general area of Miran Shah in the North Waziristan district, killing the terrorists.

According to the media wing, the weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the slain terrorists.