Peshawar:
Terrorists carried out 13 overnight gun and pomegranate attacks on police in several districts in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP), where at least six policemen embraced martyrdom, officials said on Thursday.
Many of these attacks were repelled when police fought back and inflicted attackers, while Counter Terrorism Department (CTD), in an intelligence -based operation (IBO), killed three terrorists in Peshawar.
The attacks overnight were against police stations, control points and patrols over seven districts in the province, police officer Mohammad Ali Babakhel told Reuters. The attacks came when the nation celebrated its 78th Day of Independence.
The unprecedented wave of violence hit several districts, including Peshawar, Upper Dir, Lower Dir, Shangla and Bannu, in what officials described as an attempt to challenge the state’s writing before the day of independence.
The militants used rocket -driven grenade (RPG) throwers in some of the attacks, Babakhel said, adding that six officers were martyrated and another nine wounded. The provincial police chief Zulfiqar Hameed later said the death took place in two events.
“Out of 13, we caused them loss, rejected them, and forced them to flee in nine, 10 incidents,” Hameed, the Inspector General (IG) of the KP police, told journalists after attending burials of the policemen in the Upper DIR district.
The most serious attack took place in the Upper Dir’s Panah Kot area, where three policemen embraced martyrdom after their mobile van was assaulted. Six others were injured in the incident.
The neighboring Lower Dir District witnessed two separate attacks on police checkpoints in Maidan, Lajbok and Shadas. Constable Sanaullah was martyrated in Lajbok while Constable Sultan Zareen was injured in Shadas, police say.
In Bannu’s Miryan and Mazanga areas, terrorists fired an RPG-7 on police checkpoints, but officers returned fire and forced the assailants to flee without inflicting injuries, police say.
Similarly targeted attackers in Shanglas remote choga area a police station at around 01:30, but night vision equipment and quick warning of reinforcements allowed police to reject the assault. Sources said a militant was injured.
In the provincial capital, terrorists hit two police checkpoints in Matni and Nasir Bagh as well as Hassan Khel police station. Constable Jahangir Khan was martyrated and another officer wounded in Hassan Khel attack.
CTD later said that three Fitna al-Khawarij-an expression used for the forbidden Tehreek-E-Taliban (TTP)-was killed in an IBO supported by the local police under the auspices of the Lalma area on Wednesday night.
“The suspects had been under continuous technical surveillance, with investigators who track their movements and confirm their identities through electronic footprints,” a statement states.
“To act on the intelligence of an impending terrorist attack in the Khyber-Peshawar border area, a CTD SWAT team intercepted the group. The militants opened exclusively fire, which caused an accurate reaction that left all three dead on the spot,” it added.
It identified one of the dead terrorists when Abdullah alias Jawad, an Afghan citizen, already wanted the police in a case. The identities of the other two have not yet been confirmed, while a search for their fleeing accomplices was underway.
CTD stated that the preliminary investigation connects the gang with at least 18 terrorist incidents in the Peshawar district in the past, with almost two dozen policemen and citizens being martyrated.
Weapons and explosives recovered from the site included an M4 rifle, an M16 rifle, an SMG, a 2.5 kg of improvised explosion device (IED), a hand grenade, four smartphones, 125 rounds of various ammunition and six magazines, added the statement.
Officials said the group was part of a TTP-bound cell that operates under foreign-based dealers, with active plans to escalate attacks against security forces, infrastructure and pro-state individuals.
CTD paid tribute to the operation as a demonstration of “unshakable commitment, operational precision and coordination between agencies” in dismantling terrorist networks and protection of peace in the region.
Elements of Fitna al-Khawarij also fired at a police near Nasir Bagh, but timely action prevented losses, “the KP police said.” Matni and Nasir Bagh assault were foiled, forcing attackers to retreat. “
IG paid tribute to the professionalism and courage of the police council and noted that 80% of the attacks had been foiled despite the assault. “The enemy tried to overshadow August 14 -celebrations, but our brave soldiers were stuck,” he said.
During a visit to the Upper Dir, Hameed participated in the funeral beans for the martyred staff. He also participated in Funeral Prayer for Constable Jahangir Khan by Malik Saad Shaheed Police Lines in Peshawar.
Main Minister Ali Amin Gandapur condemned the attacks as “Feige Actions” aimed at demoralizing police, he assured support for the families of martyrs and promised that their victims “will be remembered in history”.
(With input from Reuters)
