Islamabad: At least five police officers were injured on Wednesday in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province following a remote-controlled explosive attack targeting their vehicle. The incident occurred in the Buner district’s rugged Kankoi Mandnar area. Militants detonated an explosive device near a mobile police van, leaving a sub-inspector among those seriously injured. According to reports, the injured officers were quickly transported to a nearby hospital for medical treatment.
The explosion took place during Pakistan’s ongoing hosting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, attended by various foreign dignitaries, including India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and China’s Premier Li Qiang. Security measures were already heightened across the nation for the summit, but this attack added to the tension in the region.
Following the attack, a large contingent of police personnel swiftly arrived at the scene, securing the area and launching an extensive search operation to track down the militants responsible. The targeted officers were conducting routine patrols in the area when the device was remotely triggered.
This incident comes just two days after a deadly terrorist assault by the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP) on police lines in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu district. That attack resulted in fierce gunfights and the tragic deaths of four police officers, further highlighting the escalating violence in the region.