IED blast targeting police vehicle kills three policemen in northwest Pakistan

Three security personnel were killed in an IED blast targeting a police vehicle in Panyala, Dera Ismail Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan; authorities blame unidentified terrorists and condemn the attack

Peshawar: Three security men were killed in an improvised explosive device blast targeting a police vehicle in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday, an official said. The incident occurred in the Panyala area of Dera Ismail Khan district, bordering South Waziristan.

Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) Gul Alam, Constable Rafiq and the driver of the mobile van, Sakhi Jan, lost their lives in the incident.

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The Paniyala Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), station house officer (SHO) and other district police officials reached the site of the improvised explosive device (IED) blast soon after the incident.

A statement by the office of Dera Ismail Khan District Police Officer (DPO) Sajjad Ahmad Sahibzada said that the attack was carried out by “unidentified terrorists.” The terrorists have carried out a cowardly attack, the DPO told the media.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Muhammad Sohail Afridi has strongly condemned the bomb attack. There have been several incidents of attacks on law enforcers in recent months in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as Pakistan continues to grapple with the issue of terrorism.

The country witnessed a surge in terror activities, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, after the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022.