ISLAMABAD: A militant attack on a joint checkpost of security forces and law enforcement agencies in northwest Pakistan this week killed eleven security personnel and a child, the military’s media wing said on Tuesday, marking the latest in a series of attacks in a region bordering Afghanistan.
Pakistan has witnessed a steady rise in attacks in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021, with most violence targeting police and security forces in former tribal districts along the border.
Islamabad says the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militant group has reorganized across the frontier and operates from safe havens inside Afghanistan, a charge Kabul rejects, insisting it does not allow its territory to be used against other countries. Pakistan also accuses India of supporting the TTP and Baloch separatist militant outfits, a charge New Delhi has always denied.
Pakistani military’s media wing said the latest attack took place at a joint checkpost for security forces and law enforcement personnel in the northwestern Bajaur district. It added that the attack was carried out by the “Fitna al Khwarij,” a term the military frequently uses to describe the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) or Pakistani Taliban group.
“In their desperation, the attackers rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into the perimeter wall,” the Inter-Services Public Relations, the military’s media wing, said.”Due to blast impact infrastructure at checkpost collapsed, resultantly eleven brave sons of soil rendered the ultimate sacrifice and embraced shahadat [martyrdom].”
The ISPR said militants’ attempts to breach the checkpost security was thwarted by security forces. It said the attack was repelled and in the process, security forces killed 12 militants.
The military said civilian residential buildings within close proximity of the checkpost also suffered “severe destruction” due to the explosion. One girl was killed while seven others, including women and children, were injured in the attack.
The ISPR said security forces were carrying out sanitization operations in the area to hunt down any other militants.
“The sacrifices of our brave soldiers and innocent civilians further reinforce our unwavering commitment to safeguarding our nation at all costs,” the ISPR vowed.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister’s office condemned the suicide bombing in a statement.
“The martyrdom of security personnel and a child in the terrorist attack is extremely tragic,” the statement said, adding that emergency services had been instructed to speed up rescue efforts.
Districts along Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan, including Bajaur and Bannu, have repeatedly been targeted in bombings and assaults on security checkpoints since a fragile ceasefire between Islamabad and the TTP collapsed in late 2022.
Security forces continue to conduct intelligence-based operations in the region, but patrols and outposts remain frequent targets.
