(Peshawar) At least 10 police officers were killed during an overnight attack by dozens of attackers on their post in northwest Pakistan, a senior local police official said Monday.
This event occurs a few days before the legislative and provincial elections scheduled for Thursday. Violence increased in the run-up to the vote, with dozens of attacks against candidates or party supporters having been recorded.
“More than 30 terrorists launched an attack from three directions. There was exchange of fire for more than two and a half hours,” said Akhtar Hayat Gandapur, the police chief of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
The assault targeted Chaudhwan police station in Dera Ismail Khan district, leaving 10 police officers dead and four injured, he added.
The attackers briefly took control of the post, during this attack which began around 1:30 a.m., according to the same source.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa border region has long been hit by attacks by Islamist militants. The Pakistani Taliban Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the regional branch of the Islamic State (IS) group are particularly targeting security forces there.
Pakistan has been facing a deterioration in security for several months, particularly since the return to power of the Taliban in Kabul in August 2021, particularly in these regions bordering Afghanistan.
Islamabad believes that some of these attacks are planned from Afghan soil, where the attackers would have “sanctuaries”, which Kabul denies.
In 2023, more than 1,500 civilians, security forces and insurgents were killed, the highest toll in six years, according to the Islamabad-based Center for Security Research and Studies.
Election campaigns in Pakistan are generally marked by episodes of violence. Many candidates and voters have in the past been targeted by armed attacks and bombings by Islamist insurgents.