ISLAMABAD, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Three policemen and three terrorists were killed during a Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) operation in Pakistan's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the CTD said on Tuesday.

The operation was conducted following intelligence reports about the presence of militants in Shangla district of the province, the CTD said in a statement.

"The operation triggered off an intense exchange of fire in which the fatalities happened on both sides," the CTD said.

Among those killed was a high-profile militant commander who had a bounty of 5 million Pakistani rupees (about 17,900 U.S. dollars) placed on his head by the provincial government, the statement added.

The CTD said the group associated with the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan had been involved in previous attacks targeting Chinese nationals working in Pakistan.

The country's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi paid tribute to the fallen police officers and reaffirmed the government's resolve to eliminate terrorism from the country. ■