Pakistan Militant Attack Kills 10 Frontier Police in Dera Ismail Khan
At least 10 Pakistani frontier police officers were killed in a militant attack on an outpost near Dera Ismail Khan, a city in the country’s northwest, the Interior Ministry confirmed on Thursday.
The attack was claimed by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an Islamist militant group that has intensified its assaults across the region in recent months.
The attack occurred as Pakistan faces an increase in militant activity in its northwestern areas and a growing ethnic separatist insurgency in the south. According to police sources, a large group of militants stormed the outpost, overpowering the personnel of the Frontier Constabulary security force.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the brutal attack, expressing grief over the loss of lives and vowing to bring the perpetrators to justice.
The TTP claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement, describing it as retaliation for the recent killing of their senior leader, Ustad Qureshi. He was killed in an intelligence-based operation in the Bajaur district, bordering Afghanistan, along with eight others, including two suicide bombers.
The TTP, although separate from the Afghan Taliban, pledges allegiance to the group ruling Afghanistan since the withdrawal of U.S.-led forces in 2021. Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of providing safe havens for TTP militants, a charge the Afghan Taliban denies.
This latest attack underscores the persistent threat Pakistan faces from militant groups operating along its border with Afghanistan.
