Dera Ismail Khan: At least 11 people were killed and 30 others injured after a suicide bomber detonated an explosives-laden vehicle at a roadside police checkpoint in Dera Ismail Khan district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Saturday, according to police and rescue officials.
Two officials from the customs and excise department were among those killed in the attack, police said.
Bomb disposal teams deployed
Following the blast, bomb disposal teams were sent to the site to determine the nature of the explosives used in the attack.
The dead and injured were shifted to a nearby hospital, where some of those wounded were reported to be in critical condition.
Rescue teams from the Darazinda station reached the site shortly after the explosion and began relief operations. They provided first aid to the injured before transporting them to hospital, according to the rescue service.
The explosion occurred amid a series of security incidents reported in the district and other parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa this month.
Pakistani Taliban claims responsibility
Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), commonly known as the Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement.
The TTP is a separate organisation from the Afghan Taliban, although the two groups are allied. The Afghan Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021.
The latest attack has renewed concerns over militant violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a region that has experienced repeated attacks, particularly in areas close to the Afghanistan border.
Similar attack reported in Kohat
The Dera Ismail Khan bombing came about a week after another attack in Kohat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
In that incident, an attacker drove an explosives-laden vehicle into a mosque located near police offices. The blast caused the outer wall of the police offices to collapse and severely damaged the mosque.
According to the figures provided by officials, 21 people were killed and 78 others injured in the Kohat explosion. At least 15 police officers were among those killed, as the attack occurred close to a building housing police offices.
The latest bombing in Dera Ismail Khan adds to a series of attacks targeting security personnel and government facilities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.