In a suspected suicide attack in north-west Pakistan carried out by a Tehreek Taliban Pakistan (TTP) bomber, 10 soldiers were killed on Tuesday evening. In another attack, less than a day earlier, at least eight soldiers were killed in the region bordering Afghanistan. In the two attacks, on which there was official word from any ministry or Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), 18 soldiers died, and several others were injured.
A new trend has been witnessed for the last few weeks in that the internet services are snapped in areas in which casualties of security personnel are reported. The official word is usually that the action is taken to disrupt the communication network of those carrying out the attacks. The reality is something different, according to unnamed officials who said that the authorities do not want the real picture of the casualties to be known.
“A suspected suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden vehicle near the checkpoint, after which his accomplices opened fire,” an intelligence official said of the latest attack in Bannu, a report by the News International said. “As of the latest updates, 10 people have been killed and seven injured in the attack,” he said.
The official said that the explosion “caused significant damage” to the Mali Khel checkpoint’s structure as well as to military vehicles. The Hafiz Gul Bahadur armed group claimed responsibility for the attack.
The bombing occurred less than 24 hours after another attack, also in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, according to another official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity.
Meanwhile, seven policemen, who were kidnapped from the Rocha post in the Ahmadzai subdivision on Monday, have been safely recovered following successful negotiations facilitated by the local tribal elders, according to officials. In an incident reported a couple of days ago, armed Tehreek Taliban Pakistan (TTP) men have attacked the police post, looted weapons and ammunition, and then took away these seven policemen at gun point.
It bears mention that the government officials have often made snide remarks about jirgas and tried to disrupt them in the recent past. On this occasion, however, it was a jirga comprising tribal elders which held discussions with the armed abductors at an undisclosed location. The negotiations concluded successfully, leading to unconditional release of the policemen. District Police Officer Ziauddin Ahmad said all the seven policemen were released without being paid any ransom money or conditions. Tribal elders played a key role in resolving the situation peacefully and saving the lives of the policemen.
In a related development, two security personnel were injured when militants attacked a security checkpoint in the Janikhel area, Bannu, while a barber shop was blown up in the Sardikhel area, sources said.
The sources said that militants targeted the security checkpoint with rockets, injuring two security personnel. The attack led to an exchange of gunfire between the attackers and security forces. Unidentified people planted explosives near a barber shop in Sardikhel, which detonated with a blast, damaging the shop. No casualties were reported in the explosion.
Meanwhile, as many as eight soldiers were killed during a clash in the Tirah area of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, police and intelligence officials said late on Tuesday. The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for carrying out the attack.
Worried about the repeated attacks by various armed groups, the Pakistan government headed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has asked the security forces to carry out clearing of rebels in Balochistan. The action has been approved by Federal Apex Committee of the National Action Plan. Repeated attacks targeting civilians and foreign nationals were meant to create insecurity at the “behest of hostile external powers”, an official spokesman said.
