PESHAWAR: Five cops were killed when a group of “terrorists” ambushed a police van in Pakistan’s northwestern Karak district on Tuesday, a police official confirmed. 

Karak police spokesperson Shaukat Khan said a heavy police reinforcement has been dispatched to the site of the attack in the district’s Gurguri area to collect evidence. 

“Over a dozen well-armed terrorists ambushed a police mobile van in the jurisdiction of Gurguri police station, an inaccessible area of the district, leaving five policemen martyred,” Khan told Arab News. 

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, similar attacks on police and security forces have been claimed in the past by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) or the Pakistani Taliban. 

Khan identified the slain police officers as Shahid Iqbal, Arif, Sami Ullah, Safdar and the driver named Muhammad Ibrar.

“Evidence has been collected from the crime scene and a comprehensive search operation is now underway to apprehend the perpetrators,” Khan said. 

The Gurguri region is home to a large gas field, where exploration activities take place regularly. This often necessitates heightened security measures by law enforcement personnel.

Pakistan has witnessed a surge in militant activities, particularly in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province bordering Afghanistan, in recent months. 

Earlier this month, one police constable was killed while five others were injured in a suicide blast that targeted a police vehicle in the Lakki Marwat district. 

Similarly, three police personnel were killed in November when militants attacked a checkpost in Hangu city. 

Pakistan has blamed Afghanistan for facilitating cross-border attacks against its security forces and turning a blind eye to the TTP’s activities on its soil. 

Afghanistan rejects the allegations and says it cannot be held responsible for Islamabad’s security lapses.