Dera Ismail Khan | Pakistan

DERA ISMAIL KHAN: Unidentified armed militants attacked the Khutti police checkpoint in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district late on Saturday night, triggering an exchange of fire with security personnel, police officials said. According to the police, the assailants carried out the attack under the cover of darkness using heavy weapons. Personnel stationed at the checkpoint responded swiftly and returned fire, forcing the attackers to retreat. During the exchange, one police constable sustained injuries. Officials said the militants managed to flee from the scene following the retaliatory action by the police. Soon after the incident, a heavy contingent of police and Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) personnel, led by SP City Division Murtaza Khan Bangash, reached the site and cordoned off the area. The injured constable was taken to a hospital for medical treatment, and a search operation was launched in the surrounding locality to trace the attackers. Police said that hand grenades and explosive...

PESHAWAR: The district administration in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan has imposed Section 144 in view of the prevailing law and order situation, restricting movement on several roads and in sensitive areas, according to an official notification on Monday. Deputy Commissioner Abdul Nasir Khan said the restrictions would remain in force from 6am to 6pm, during which the movement of passenger vehicles, cargo transport and motorcycles would be completely prohibited in designated areas. According to the notification, Dera-Tank Road from Tariq Shaheed to Bhugowal will remain closed, while several other roads, including Kulachi-Hathala Road, Kot Attal Road and Garah Abdullah Road will also remain shut to traffic. Authorities said a number of link roads, including Tikwarah-Hathala Road, Pota Badh, Kanori-Garah Mohabbat, Chehkan village to Darbari and the Pota–Kot Isa Khan link road, will remain closed during the restriction period. The administration has also ordered the closure of Pota Hathala Bazaar from 6...

PESHAWAR: Two officials were martyred and two others injured when militants attacked Yarik police station and a customs office in Dera Ismail Khan on Wednesday, police said. According to officials, attackers opened fire with automatic weapons on the Yarik police station and a nearby customs office, located along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) route. A police spokesperson said the officials martyred in the attack were customs official Israr Khan and police constable Mohammad Bilal. The injured, identified as Hazrat Umar and Khayal Mohammad, were shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital’s trauma centre, where they were undergoing treatment. Police said the attackers also fired at passenger buses travelling on the CPEC route, causing panic in the area. A customs vehicle was set ablaze during the assault. Security personnel returned fire, prompting the assailants to flee. A heavy police contingent reached the site soon after the incident, and a search operation was launched in the surrounding ar...

Three cops, including an assistant sub-inspector (ASI), were martyred in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast targeting a police vehicle in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan on Wednesday. The spokesperson for district police, Yaqoob Zulqarnain said, told Dawn that an IED was used in the blast that took place in Paniyala area, which is in the jurisdiction of the Shaheed Nawab Khan police station. ASI Gul Alam, Constable Rafiq and the driver of the mobile van, Sakhi Jan, lost their lives in the incident, the police spokesperson said, adding that another constable accompanying them, Azad Shah, remained unhurt. He said the site of the incident had been cordoned off and a search operation had been launched. “Police are searching for the attackers, and the matter is being investigated from all angles,” he said. The Paniyala deputy superintendent of police and station house officer, as well as the district police official (DPO), also reached the site of the blast after the incident, according to the police...

Security forces killed 22 terrorists in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district, the military’s media affairs wing said on Thursday. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that the operation was conducted based on the reported presence of terrorists belonging to Indian Proxy Fitna al Khwarij. Fitna al Khawarij is a term the state uses for terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). “During the conduct of [the] operation, own troops effectively engaged the khawarij location and after an intense fire exchange, 22 khawarij were sent to hell,” the ISPR stated. “Sanitisation operation is being conducted to eliminate any other Indian-sponsored kharji found in the area, as the relentless counter-terrorism campaign under vision ‘Azm-i-Istehkam’ (as approved by the Federal Apex Committee on National Action Plan) by security forces and law enforcement agencies of Pakistan will continue at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponso...

DERA ISMAIL KHAN: At least eight alleged terrorists were gunned down by security forces in an operation on Monday, after a team from Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) came under attack near the Kot Lalu area in Daraban, Dera Ismail Khan. The action came in an apparent response to an attack on the SNGPL team, in which security forces reportedly also suffered casualties. However, there was no official word from Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) or other security agencies about their losses until going to press. Sources said the militants were killed after intelligence reports were received about their presence in a nearby jungle, prompting the security forces to launch an offensive in which eight suspects were gunned down. Following the action, the forces cordoned off the area and initiated wide-ranging search-and-clearance operations in the surrounding terrain. Reinforcements were dispatched to secure the site and to pursue the fleeing suspects. Two suspects killed in Swabi encounter; attack on B...

Security forces on Wednesday killed 13 terrorists in an intelligence-based operation (IBO) carried out in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district, the military’s media wing said in a statement. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), security forces conducted the operation in the Daraban area, upon the reported presence of terrorists “belonging to Indian proxy, Fitna al Khwarij”. The state uses the term Fitna al Khwarij to refer to terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). It has also designated Balochistan-based groups as Fitna al Hindustan to highlight India’s alleged role in terrorism and destabilisation across Pakistan. “During the conduct of [the] operation, [our] own troops effectively engaged the khwarij location and [as a result], 13 Indian sponsored khwarij were sent to hell,” the statement read. The ISPR added that weapons and ammunition were recovered from the dead terrorists, who were involved in terrorist activity in the area. The statement added...

Two policemen were gunned down in a “terrorist” attack on Wednesday in Kulachi area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district, police said. Speaking to Dawn.com, DI Khan Police Spokesperson, Yaqoob Khan, said, “The two police personnel were on their way to buy food when the terrorists opened fire on them.” The deceased have been identified as head constable Ghulam Muhammad and constable Shahzad, both of whom were ex-servicemen. Following the attack, police and Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) personnel tracked down the terrorists and killed one of them during an operation, while the other two, though injured, fled. “Weapons and ammunition have been recovered from the slain terrorist, while a search operation is underway for the terrorists at large,” according to the spokesperson. Federal Minister for Interior Mohsin Naqvi condemned the attack, paying tribute to the martyred personnel. He saluted the “sacrifices made by the brave sons” of KP in their fight against terrorism. Expressing sympathy for t...

At least five people were killed in a collision between a car and a truck on Chashma Road in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district on Thursday morning, Rescue 1122 said. Rescue 1122 Spokesperson for DI Khan Aizaz Mehmood told Dawn.com, “The collision took place near the Jholy Hotel within the limits of the Khari Khaisoor police station. “A family was heading towards DI Khan when their car collided with a truck that was on its way to Punjab.” He said the Rescue 1122 team had “reached the scene soon after the incident, where it found all five people in the car dead”. “The bodies have been taken to the Paharpur Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, while the heirs of the deceased are being contacted to claim the bodies,” Mehmood said. The deceased were identified as Rawda Munir, Muhammad Mutasim, Muhammad Talha, Muhammad Tufail and the driver Wasimullah. All were residents of DI Khan’s Zafar Abad Colony, he said. Meanwhile, DI Khan police spokesperson Yaqoob Khan said that an investigation into the incident is ...