In a brazen daylight assault on Tuesday, unidentified gunmen launched a deadly attack on a police patrol unit in Pakistan’s volatile northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, resulting in the deaths of five law enforcement officers. The ambush occurred near an oil and gas installation in Karak district during routine security operations.
According to local police chief Noor Wali, the assailants executed the officers before dousing their vehicle with gasoline and setting it ablaze, destroying evidence at the crime scene. Security forces immediately established perimeter control and initiated comprehensive search operations, during which eight suspects connected to the assault were eliminated in subsequent engagements.
Senior Pakistani officials, including Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Provincial Chief Minister Suhail Afridi, issued strong condemnations of the attack, vowing to bring perpetrators to justice while extending sympathies to bereaved families of the slain officers.
While no militant organization has formally claimed responsibility, security analysts indicate the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) as primary suspects. The TTP maintains operational independence while aligning ideologically with Afghanistan’s Taliban government. This incident represents the latest escalation in cross-border tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, with Islamabad accusing Kabul of providing sanctuary to TTP operatives since the 2021 Taliban takeover—allegations consistently denied by Afghan authorities.
The attack occurs amidst deteriorating bilateral relations following October’s cross-border clashes that resulted in numerous casualties before Qatar-mediated ceasefire implementation. Recent diplomatic negotiations in Istanbul concluded without substantive agreements, further complicating regional security dynamics.