SOUTH WAZIRISTAN: A former police official was gunned down in the Gorgorah area of Wana tehsil in Lower South Waziristan district on Saturday evening.

Police sources said that unidentified assailants targeted Hayatullah Wazir and managed to escape.

Lower South Waziristan district police officer Mohammad Tahir Shah Wazir confirmed the incident, stating that police had begun an investigation.

According to the police sources, Hayatullah was dismissed from the police department on September 16 for absence from duty and violation of departmental rules. Following the murder, fear spread among local residents and police patrols were increased in the area.

Meanwhile, a 13-year-old girl was killed when a mortar shell landed near a house in the Kaza Panga area of Birmal tehsil of Lower South Waziristan on Saturday.

According to in-charge of the police’s bomb disposal squad Zabiullah Wazir, the mortar shell landed a few metres away from its intended target and fell beside a house, exploding with a loud blast. As a result, a 13-year-old girl was killed on the spot.

He said the armed men managed to flee from the scene, while the police began an investigation into the incident.

Local residents said the law and order situation in Birmal tehsil had deteriorated alarmingly over the past year. They said that incidents of bomb blasts, targeted killing, kidnappings for ransom, killings of civilians and attacks on police checkposts had seen a marked rise, leaving the population deeply anxious and insecure.

Residents urged the government, the district administration and the police to take effective measures for restoring peace in the region so that the lives and property of citizens could be protected and normalcy could return to Birmal.

Published in Dawn, November 23rd, 2025