DERA ISMAIL KHAN: Unidentified armed militants attacked the Khutti police checkpoint in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan district late on Saturday night, triggering an exchange of fire with security personnel, police officials said.

According to the police, the assailants carried out the attack under the cover of darkness using heavy weapons. Personnel stationed at the checkpoint responded swiftly and returned fire, forcing the attackers to retreat.

During the exchange, one police constable sustained injuries. Officials said the militants managed to flee from the scene following the retaliatory action by the police.

Soon after the incident, a heavy contingent of police and Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) personnel, led by SP City Division Murtaza Khan Bangash, reached the site and cordoned off the area.

The injured constable was taken to a hospital for medical treatment, and a search operation was launched in the surrounding locality to trace the attackers.

Police said that hand grenades and explosive material allegedly thrown by the militants were later defused by a Bomb Disposal Unit (BDU) team.

Officials added that an investigation into the incident was underway, and efforts were being made to apprehend those involved.

Police personnel in KP have faced a surge in militant attacks in recent months, particularly in the province’s southern districts bordering Afghanistan.

Ambushes on patrols, improvised explosive device (IED) blasts targeting police vehicles, and assaults on checkpoints have become increasingly frequent as militants step up operations against law enforcement.

In February, a suicide car bombing followed by gunfire targeted a security checkpoint in Bajaur district, killing 11 security personnel and a child before security forces killed the attackers.

In another incident, coordinated militant attacks on police vehicles in Kohat left several officers dead, underscoring a renewed spike in violence against police in the province.

Similarly, seven policemen, including a station house officer, were killed when an improvised explosive device struck a police vehicle in Lakki Marwat during a patrol.