Five police officers were killed on Tuesday when gunmen opened fire on a police vehicle in Pakistan’s northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, officials said.
The attackers set fire to the vehicle after shooting at it in Karak district, police said. The police officers were on duty when the ambush took place.
Police identified the slain policemen as Shahid Iqbal, Safdar, Arif, Samiullah and Muhammad Abrar.
The attack took place near Aman Kot in the Garagri Banda region. The mountainous region stretches along the border between Karak, Kohat and Lakki Marwat districts and is considered very sensitive due to its oil and gas reserves.
After the attack, police cordoned off the area and launched a search operation. Investigators collected evidence at the scene and began a formal investigation.
“We are investigating the incident from all angles and efforts are underway to trace the attackers,” said Saud, the Karak district police officer.
Oil and gas from Garagri Banda is supplied to several southern districts of the province, including Bannu, Dera Ismail Khan and Lakki Marwat, as well as to Bhakkar. MOL Pakistan manages mining in the region, with security provided by the Pakistan Army and other law enforcement agencies.
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The region has a history of militant violence. In the past, armed groups have attacked oil and gas installations and workers at some sites have been kidnapped.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the attack and expressed grief over the deaths.
“The police have always played a frontline role in the fight against terrorism,” Sharif said. “The entire nation salutes the martyrs.”
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi also condemned the ambush.
“The sacrifices of police personnel will not go in vain. The provincial government stands with the police,” Afridi said.
The killings are the latest in a series of attacks targeting police in the province.
Last week, a policeman and his brother were shot dead in Lakki Marwat. Earlier this month, a police officer was killed and five others injured in a suicide attack that hit a police vehicle in the same neighborhood.
In November, three police officers were killed while responding to a militant attack on a checkpoint in Hangu district.
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