At least six Pakistani security personnel have been killed in three separate attacks, including two raids on security posts, in the country’s western provinces, the military says, the latest in a spike in violence targeting security forces in the South Asian country.
In the northwestern Bajaur district, at least four security personnel were killed late on Wednesday night when an improvised explosive device targeted security forces conducting a search operation in the area, the military’s press wing said in a statement.
Bajaur DPO Abdul Samad Khan told media that a roadside bomb went off in the hilly area of Mamund tehsil near Pak-Afghan border.
He said the blast occurred in Teer Banda locality when a joint team of security forces and police were conducting a search operation in the area following an earlier explosion that had targeted a vehicle of a contractor, wounding two persons.
He said four personnel — FC’s Jamshed and Mudassir and police constables Noor Rahman and Samad Khan were martyred in the second blast.
He said it was an IED device that had been planted along the way before the first explosion. Soon after the incident, a team of FC and police reached the site and shifted the martyred security men to the district headquarters hospital in Khar for formalities.
After the incident, security forces and police cordoned off the blast site and launched a search operation to trace those involved in the blast.
However, no arrest was reported till late into night.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing. The tribal elders and political figures condemned the incident and asked the authorities to take serious action against the attackers.
Earlier in the morning, an army soldier was martyred in a terrorist attack on the Chapri Waziran check post adjacent to North Waziristan tribal district in the Hangu area.
Officials said a sepoy of the Thall Scouts — identified as Waqas, 28, a resident of Mansehra — embraced shahadat during the exchange of fire that lasted several hours.
The Inter-Services Public Relations said in a statement that troops initiated a prompt response and effectively engaged the terrorists. Area clearance was being carried out to eliminate any terrorists found in the locality.