At least nine policemen were killed and 28 others injured after militants launched a deadly assault on a security checkpoint in Hangu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, near Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan, police said on Thursday.
According to a statement issued by the provincial police headquarters, the attack took place on Wednesday night and triggered an intense exchange of gunfire between the assailants and security personnel.
Police said security forces killed 15 attackers while repelling the assault.
Authorities blamed the attack on “Fitna al Khawarij,” the term used by the Pakistani state for militants belonging to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has carried out numerous attacks on security forces and government installations in the country’s northwestern and southwestern regions.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi strongly condemned the attack and expressed condolences to the families of the policemen who lost their lives.
Pakistan has witnessed a sharp rise in militant violence in recent months, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, where security forces have faced frequent attacks by armed groups.