At least 14 people, including police officials, were martyred and 22 others injured in a suicide attack on Swat’s Kabal police station on Sunday, police said.

Swat police spokesperson Nasir Iqbal Karimi, while speaking to Dawn, confirmed the death toll.

Malakand Division Deputy Inspector General of Police Fida Hussain told AFP that police officers were among those martyred.

He added that 22 people had been wounded and another body, suspected to be that of the bomber, had been brought to hospital.

According to the Swat District Police Officer (DPO) Umar Khan, the suicide bomber detonated explosives after police personnel attempted to stop and search him at the entrance of the police station.

The DPO said that the police remained on high alert. “Security forces have cordoned off the area, and an investigation is underway to collect further evidence,“ he added.

The explosion occurred near the gate of Kabal police station while hundreds of people were participating in a public demonstration at nearby Kabal Chowk against the recent wave of terrorism in Swat Valley.

The powerful blast caused multiple casualties, prompting an immediate emergency response from police, rescue teams and local authorities.

The injured were shifted to nearby Saidu Sharif Teaching Hospital for treatment, while security personnel sealed off the area and launched a search operation.

The protest had drawn a large crowd from across the district and the attack occurred as the final speaker was addressing the crowd, triggering panic among participants. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Addressing the gathering before the blast, the speakers condemned the resurgence of terrorism in Swat and demanded that the government ensure lasting peace. They said their movement had a single agenda: the restoration of peace and the elimination of terrorism from the region.

The speakers stressed that maintaining law and order and eradicating terrorism were the state’s responsibility, warning that continued insecurity could trigger widespread public unrest, citing recent protest movements in other countries as examples of growing public frustration.

The speakers also criticised the authorities for what they described as action against peaceful citizens while terrorists continued to operate in the mountainous areas of Swat. They alleged that terrorists had openly circulated videos on social media and questioned why stronger action had not been taken against them.

“Our children deserve education, and our families deserve to live in peace,” one speaker told the gathering.

“We have witnessed years of bloodshed. Our mothers, sisters, and daughters have suffered immensely, and we do not want another generation of widows and orphans.”

Condemnations pour in

President Asif Ali Zardari expressed sorrow over the loss of life and called for a comprehensive investigation into the incident, according to a statement issued by his office on X.

President Zardari directed the relevant authorities to provide the best possible medical facilities to those injured.

“Terrorists will never succeed in their nefarious efforts to undermine peace, national unity and the writ of the state,” he was quoted as saying. He added that the sacrifices of the KP police were “a source of pride for the entire nation”.

KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi also condemned the blast.

“Terrorists cannot demoralise the nation with cowardly attacks,” Kundi was quoted as saying, as per a statement.

KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, condemning the incident, sought a report from the KP Inspector General of Police (IGP) and offered condolences to the families of the deceased.

“The elements hostile to peace will never be allowed to succeed in their nefarious intentions,” the chief minister was quoted as saying.

Earlier in the day, an IED blast near the Peshawar-Islamabad motorway toll plaza injured two policemen in the provincial capital Peshawar. On July 30, a terrorist attack on a police checkpost in Hangu martyred nine policemen.

KP has seen an uptick in terrorist activity. According to the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies’s monthly security assessment, KP, excluding the merged districts, recorded 154 terrorism related deaths in July, compared with 75 in June, representing an increase of 105 per cent.