PESHAWAR: Three Pakistani policemen were killed on Thursday when militants attacked a security checkpoint in the Hangu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), officials said, the latest in a surge of violence targeting law enforcement in the country’s northwest.
The attack came just three days after suicide bombers stormed the headquarters of the Frontier Constabulary, a paramilitary force, in Peshawar on Monday, killing three personnel and injuring more than five. The back-to-back assaults underscore deteriorating security conditions in KP, which has faced a sharp escalation in militant activity over the past two years.
Much of the violence has been claimed or linked to the Pakistani Taliban, or Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and its splinter factions. The group regrouped after a fragile ceasefire between the TTP and the Pakistani state collapsed in November 2022, leading to a renewed wave of attacks on police, military, and government targets across the province.
KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi condemned Thursday’s attack and directed a rapid security response.
“Terrorists have no religion; such cowardly attacks cannot weaken our resolve,” Afridi said. “The fight against terrorism will continue with even stronger determination.”
