Death toll from suicide bombing in Pakistan rises to 14
Kyiv • UNN
A suicide bomber detonated a vehicle near a security post in Pakistan's Bannu. Due to the attack and the subsequent building collapse, the number of police officers killed has risen to 14.
The death toll from a suicide attack on a security post in northwestern Pakistan has risen to 14 police officers. A self-proclaimed separatist group of the Pakistani Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack, UNN reports, citing AP.
Details
A suicide bomber and several gunmen detonated a vehicle packed with explosives near a post in Bannu, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, late Saturday, said senior police official Sajjad Khan. The attack triggered a fierce gunbattle, in which some officers were killed instantly, while others died later after a building collapsed.
Rescuers conducted a hours-long search operation using heavy machinery to pull bodies from the rubble, Khan said, adding that three police officers were injured in the attack.
Security forces have also launched an operation to track down the perpetrators.
A newly formed militant group, "Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan," claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement sent to journalists. While the group claims to have been formed by splinter factions of the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, authorities accuse it of being a front for the TTP.
Pakistan has seen a surge in militant violence in recent years, largely blamed on the TTP, a separate group but an ally of the Afghan Taliban, who returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021.
Islamabad frequently accuses the Afghan Taliban government of providing sanctuary to the TTP, which Kabul denies.
Tensions between the two neighbors persist, with both sides engaging in hostilities that have killed hundreds of people since late February.
In early April, Afghan and Pakistani officials held peace talks mediated by China. However, despite the negotiations, sporadic cross-border clashes continue, albeit with less intensity than before.