At least nine soldiers were killed and twenty others were critically injured, as per the latest accounts of a terror attack in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region on 31 August. The incident took place in the Bannu district when a suicide bomber exploded himself. Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), according to the military, was responsible for the terror strike.
A press statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) read, “On 31 August 2023, a motorcycle-borne suicide bomber exploded himself on a military convoy in general area Jani Khel, Bannu District. Resultantly, nine soldiers including Naib Subedar Sanobar Ali embraced shahadat, while five soldiers were injured.”
Security officials estimated that 20 people had been injured, however, they were not authorised to speak to the media on the record. Hence, they consented to disclose the number on the condition of anonymity.
Security officers have sealed off the location and sanitization is underway to neutralize any terrorists who might have been present there. It further added, “Security forces of Pakistan are determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve.”
Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar ul Haq Kakar expressed grief over the occurrence. He posted, “Heartbroken by the loss of 9 valiant soldiers in Bannu Division, KPK, to a cowardly terrorist act that injured many. Such acts are utterly reprehensible. My thoughts are with the families of the martyred and injured. Pakistan stands resolute against such terror.”
Heartbroken by the loss of 9 valiant soldiers in Bannu Division, KPK, to a cowardly terrorist act that injured many. Such acts are utterly reprehensible. My thoughts are with the families of the martyred and injured. 🇵🇰 stands resolute against such terror.
— Anwaar ul Haq Kakar (@anwaar_kakar) August 31, 2023
This is the second occurrence of this kind in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in more than a month. On 30 July, a suicide bomber detonated a device during a political party conference leaving at least 54 people dead and over 100 injured. There were more than 400 members and supporters of politician Fazal-ur-Rehman’s Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam party present there.
Authorities mentioned that after the Taliban took control over Afghanistan, TTP grew more confident and discovered safe havens there and lived in the open. Bannu is close to North Waziristan, a former terrorist bastion that housed insurgents until the army claimed a few years ago that it had cleansed the area of both domestic and international terrorists.
There has been an upsurge in terrorism in Pakistan in recent months, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, since the TTP broke its truce with the government in November of last year.
The military’s media wing revealed last week that six soldiers perished on 22 August during a gunfight in the South Waziristan neighbourhood. There were up to 12 Pakistani Army soldiers killed during separate military operations in the Balochistan provinces of Zhob and Sui.
The military has never witnessed such a high number of terrorist attacks-related deaths in a single day. Before this, 10 soldiers lost their lives in a “fire raid” in Balochistan’s Kech region in February 2022.
According to research by the think tank Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies which was released in July terror and suicide assaults increased progressively and dramatically in the first half of the current year.
A total of 271 attacks took place over the time period under consideration which claimed the lives of 389 people and wounded 656 others. 151 incidents occurred within the same time period last year and led to 293 fatalities and 487 injuries. These numbers show a startling 79% surge in militant attacks during the first half of 2023 compared to the corresponding period in 2022.
228 assaults, 246 deaths, and 349 injuries were documented in the second half of last year. As a result, the number of attacks increased by 18% in the first half of 2023 compared to the second half of 2022, along with a 58% increase in mortality and an 88% increase in injuries.
