PESHAWAR: Five Pakistani police personnel were killed on Tuesday (Dec 23) when their van was ambushed in a combined bombing and shooting attack in the country’s northwest, provincial police said, as Pakistan grapples with a resurgence of militant violence.
The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), later claimed responsibility for the attack. The Islamist group has waged an insurgency against the Pakistani state for nearly two decades.
Police said the vehicle was first struck by an improvised explosive device before assailants opened fire, killing four officers and the driver. Security forces later killed eight militants involved in the attack, authorities added.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the assault, saying police had “always played a frontline role in the war against terrorism”.
The ambush took place in Karak district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, an area that has been relatively spared major militant attacks compared with other parts of the province.
The incident comes amid deteriorating relations between Pakistan and neighbouring Afghanistan following a surge in violence. Islamabad has accused militants of using Afghan territory to plan attacks, a charge Kabul denies, saying Pakistan’s security challenges are an internal matter.