LAKKI MARWAT: In a series of assaults in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), a police official was martyred in Karak district on Friday while police thwarted a separate late-night terrorist assault on a police station in the Basyakhel area of Bannu, officials said.
Officials said Saeed Nawaz was deployed at a police post in the Koh-i-Maidan area, which borders the Lakki Marwat and Mianwali districts.
“On the day of occurrence, he left the duty place to go to his hometown Chapai Banda,” the official said, noting that terrorists opened fire on him as he was passing through difficult mountainous terrain.
He embraced martyrdom while the assailants fled into the mountains, the official said.
Police post in Bannu targeted with explosives-laden quadcopter
A heavy police contingent launched a search for the attackers and shifted the body to a nearby hospital.
A funeral for the fallen official was held at the Karak City Police Lines, which was attended by Kohat Regional Police Officer Abbas Majeed Marwat, District Police Officer Shahbaz Elahi, Superintendent of Investigation Muhammad Ashfaq Khan, area elders, and community representatives.
Police officials placed floral wreaths on his coffin, and a police contingent presented a final salute. Later, his body was transported to his native village of Chapai Banda for burial with full official honours.
Attack repelled
Separately, police said they repelled a terrorist attack on a police station in the Basyakhel area of Bannu district on late Thursday night.
A police official described it as a multi-pronged assault in which assailants used sniper rifles and heavy weapons.
The attack began around 1:35am in an attempt to take control of the station.
“The attack was severe and it triggered a fierce gun battle which lasted for an hour,” the official said, adding that officers fought bravely and forced the attackers to flee.
All policemen remained safe during the exchange of fire.
Hours later, in another attack in Bannu, terrorists used a quadcopter drone to target a police post in the Mazanga area.
An official said an explosive-laden quadcopter dropped ammunition on the roof of the building, prompting retaliatory fire from the officers, who were unhurt.
Police opened fire on the quadcopter, but it was at a high altitude and disappeared. The police post has been the target of repeated drone attacks last month.
Meanwhile, police in Bannu reported that Ajab Khan, a private clerk (Munshi) of a construction company, was kidnapped from the Akhandkhel area.
Police said Mr Khan, a resident of Amandi Hasan Shah, was supervising an under-construction road project when four to five armed men abducted him.
An investigation is underway to ensure his safe recovery.
Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2025
