KOHAT / DERA ISMAIL KHAN: Superintendent of Police (Opera­tions) Asad Zubair and two constables were martyred in successive remote-controlled improvised explosive device (IED) blasts at a checkpost and on a roadside in Hangu district on Friday.

Police said SP Zubair was en route to inspect the Ghalamina checkpost after an initial explosion when a second device targeting his vehicle detonated.

A spokesperson for Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa police said militants had planted two IEDs, one at the checkpost and another along the approach road. The slain constables were identified as Atif and Kifaytullah Khan.

KP Inspector General of Police (IGP) Zulfiqar Hameed said the first blast targeted a police checkpost in the jurisdiction of Bilyamina police station, Dawn.com reported.

Eight terrorists killed in Tank operation, says ISPR

He said no policemen were usually deployed at the checkpost, adding that some policemen were on their way to the site when a second blast took place near their vehicle. Three policemen were martyred in the second blast, which was caused by an improvised explosive device, the IG said.

Kohat division’s Regional Police Officer (RPO) Abbas Majeed also confirmed that there was no one at the checkpost at the time of the first blast, which took place at 2pm.

He said SP Zubair, along with a police party, had left for the checkpost following the first blast. “As their vehicle approached the location, an IED blast occurred near the checkpost. Fitna al-Khawarij had planted a more powerful IED there in comparison to the one used in the first blast,” he said, using the state-designated term for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

RPO Majeed said the second blast was a “big” one, which resulted in the death of two policemen on the spot. SP Zubair was taken to a hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. Their funerals were offered at Police Lines in Kohat. Following the blasts, police launched a search operation in the area.

KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi sought an immediate report from the IG following the incident and called a session of the apex committee on the law and order situation in the province, a statement from the CM office said.

It added that the chief minister had “strongly condemned” the incident and termed it “unfortunate”.

President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also condemned the blasts and paid tributes to the martyred police officers.

Eight terrorists killed

Separately, eight terrorists were killed during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Tank district on Friday, the military’s media wing said.

According to an Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) statement, security forces conducted the IBO in village Tator on intelligence about terrorists’ presence.

Troops “effectively engaged” the positions, prompting a fierce exchange of fire in which eight “Indian-sponsored” terrorists were killed, ISPR said.

“Weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the killed khwarij, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities against the security forces and law enforcement agencies as well as killing of innocent civilians,” it added.

Local security sources said those killed included Ahmed Gul alias Umar Malang, a key TTP commander, while one suspect was arrested. A sanitisation operation was underway to clear the area of remaining threats.

Published in Dawn, October 25th, 2025