13 killed in suicide bombing at police checkpost in northwest Pakistan

A suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden tractor-trolley into a police and customs checkpost in Darazinda tehsil of Dera Ismail Khan district, northwest Pakistan, killing at least 13 people including women and children, and injuring dozens.

Peshawar: At least 13 people, including two women and two children, were killed and dozens of others sustained injuries when an explosives-laden vehicle rammed into a police checkpost in northwest Pakistan on Saturday, an official said.

According to Pakistan’s national emergency response service Rescue 1122, the incident occurred in Darazinda tehsil of Dera Ismail Khan district, near the border between the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces.

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The banned terror outfit Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has claimed responsibility for the attack.

A suicide bomber rammed a tractor-trolley loaded with explosives into a joint police and customs checkpost in the Aman Mela area, Regional Police Officer Khan Mubashir Malik said.

The checkpost had been set up to curb smuggling and check the illegal movement of goods along the Dera Ismail Khan-Quetta road.

The blast destroyed a large portion of the checkpost and completely demolished a nearby house, killing four people, including two children.

Overall, 13 people were killed, including the suicide bomber, six excise and customs department officials, two policemen, two women and two children, a security officer said, adding that 30 sustained injuries.

The injured were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital for treatment, while the bodies were also taken there.

Bomb disposal teams were dispatched to the site to determine the nature of the explosives used in the attack, police said.

Security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation, while further investigation is underway.

In a related development, Rescue 1122 said two of its workers were killed while another was seriously injured when an ambulance transporting some bodies recovered from the blast site was targeted by unidentified assailants.

The incident occurred near the Aman Mela area.

No group or individual has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, state-owned Radio Pakistan has attributed the attack to Fitna al Khwarij.

The federal government uses the term Fitna al Khwarij for the TTP.

President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the blast in a statement issued by his office and expressed grief over the casualties.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi condemned the attack and sought a report from the concerned officials, while Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi expressed condolences to the bereaved families.

“The cowardly acts of khwarjis cannot weaken the nation’s firm resolve against terrorism,” Naqvi said.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has faced recurring unrest over the years driven by militant violence, cross-border movement of fighters from Afghanistan and repeated military operations.

Since its ceasefire deal with the Pakistani government ended in November 2022, the TTP has carried out recurring attacks in the province bordering Afghanistan.