The death toll from an attack on police personnel at a checkpoint in Pakistan’s Bannu district has risen to 15. The militant group Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan (IMP) has claimed responsibility for the bombing. The attack involved an explosives-laden vehicle being rammed into the Fateh Khel police checkpoint, causing a massive blast that destroyed the structure.
Reports indicate that following the explosion, the militants engaged in indiscriminate firing from various directions, leading to hours of heavy gunfire, further explosions, and widespread panic in the area. Bannu Regional Police Officer (RPO) Sajjad Khan mentioned that 18 police personnel were present at the checkpoint during the attack, with 15 losing their lives on the spot and three sustaining serious injuries.
The incident also caused significant damage to nearby residential buildings and other structures. Emergency measures were implemented in all major hospitals of Bannu, and Rescue 1122 teams were dispatched to the site to assist the injured and transport them to hospitals. The Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Afghan charge d’affaires to address the militant attack in Bannu, which resulted in the death of 15 police personnel and injuries to four others, including a civilian.
Pakistan has experienced a rise in militant attacks in its northwestern regions bordering Afghanistan, with a particular focus on security personnel and law enforcement agencies. In a separate incident earlier this month, armed assailants targeted a police vehicle in a rocket attack at Kangar Jan Bahadur in Bannu, resulting in the death of one police constable and injuries to two others.
