Five police officers were injured when militants launched a late-night assault on a checkpost in the Shaikh Landak area within the Havaid police limits of Bannu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, officials said on Friday.
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According to Regional Police Officer spokesperson Kashif Nawaz, the attackers — described by authorities as Fitna al Khawarij, a term used for members of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) — targeted the outpost late Thursday night.
Police personnel retaliated with “bravery and swift action,” successfully repelling the assault, the statement said. The gunbattle lasted nearly three hours, during which several militants were reportedly killed or injured as a result of sustained police fire.
Armed tribesmen and members of local peace committees also joined the security forces in countering the militants. The five injured officers sustained minor wounds and were promptly shifted to a hospital for treatment.
Following directives from Bannu Deputy Inspector General Sajjad Khan, reinforcements were dispatched to the area, which was subsequently cordoned off.
DIG Sajjad Khan and District Police Officer Yasir Afridi praised both the police and local residents for their courage, with the DPO later visiting the injured officers.
The police statement reaffirmed that Bannu police remain a “strong defensive line” against terrorism and vowed that operations against militants would continue until the threat is fully neutralised.
Thursday night’s attack came amid heightened tensions in the region — just a day after a terrorist-operated quadcopter strike injured at least seven people, including children, during a football match. Pakistan has witnessed a renewed surge in militant violence, particularly in KP and Balochistan, since the TTP ended its ceasefire in November 2022 and resumed targeting security forces and law enforcement agencies.
