By Staff Reporter
PESHAWAR: A roadside bomb tore through an armored police vehicle on patrol in Tank district on Monday, killing two officers and wounding two others in the latest attack targeting law enforcement in a district that has become one of the deadliest fronts in Pakistan’s fight against militancy.
The explosion struck an armored personnel carrier as it moved along Tank-Jandola Road, within the jurisdiction of the Shaheed Mureed Akbar police station, according to police officials. Investigators believe the device had been buried along the roadside and was detonated as the vehicle passed during a routine patrol.
Assistant Sub-Inspector Fareedullah and Constable Akhtar Zaman were killed in the blast. Two other officers, Constables Abdul Malik and Qudratullah, were injured and taken to the district headquarters hospital for treatment.
In the aftermath, security forces sealed off the area and police opened a search operation, combing the site for evidence as investigators worked to piece together how the attack was carried out and who was responsible.
The bombing is the latest in a monthslong pattern of violence against police in Tank, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that has seen a string of targeted killings and attacks on officers in recent months, part of a broader escalation of militant activity across the province and in neighboring Balochistan.
Just last week, a constable with the Elite Force was gunned down in broad daylight in the district’s main bazaar. Police said unidentified gunmen opened fire on Constable Ziaullah Bhittani near Sahib Jan Serai, close to a police post at the Durand Gate, before fleeing.
Weeks earlier, on June 20, attackers threw a grenade at a police checkpoint near a shrine in Tank, wounding Constable Fidaullah when the device exploded on the checkpoint grounds.
In May, Head Constable Jan Alam was killed when unidentified assailants opened fire on him. And in March, Head Constable Uzair Khan was shot and killed while sitting at a shop in the city’s Gali Dak Khana area.
The violence in Tank reflects a broader deterioration in security nationally. A monthly assessment by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies found that the country’s security situation worsened sharply in May after two months of improvement, driven largely by escalating militant violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi condemned the attack and requested a formal report from authorities, according to a statement from his office. He described the slain officers as a source of national pride for their sacrifices in the fight against terrorism, and directed officials to ensure the wounded received the best available medical care.
“Such attacks will not weaken the nation’s resolve” against terrorism, Kundi said in the statement. He called for a thorough investigation and said those responsible must be brought to justice.
President Asif Ali Zardari also condemned the attack, according to a statement from the Presidency, offering condolences to the families of the officers killed.
“Police and other brave law enforcement personnel are making unforgettable sacrifices for peace in the country,” Zardari said in the statement. “The entire nation salutes them.” He vowed that what he called the “nefarious designs of terrorists operating under foreign patronage” would be foiled.
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