ISLAMABAD (AP) — An army operation in Pakistan’s northwest targeting militants triggered a firefight that left two soldiers and two insurgents dead, the military said Wednesday.

The firefight happened in Tirah, a former militant stronghold in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, the military said in a statement. It provided no details about the slain insurgents.

The raid came a day after the military announced it had expanded operations against militants across the country, especially in the northwestern former tribal regions that once served as a base for the Pakistani Taliban. The group has waged an insurgency over the past 15 years.

The Pakistani Taliban, known as the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, are a separate organization but allied with the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in Afghanistan in 2021. The takeover emboldened the TTP, which has stepped up attacks in recent months.