A deadly suicide attack on the Police Training Centre in Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa occurred between Friday night and early Saturday, causing a large number of casualties.
According to officials, seven police constables and six attackers were reportedly killed, while thirteen police personnel were injured when armed men stormed the Ratta Kulachi Police Training School. District Police Officer (DPO) Sahibzada Sajjad Ahmed confirmed that around 200 trainees, instructors, and staff members were present inside the facility at the time of the attack, all of whom were evacuated safely. Unconfirmed reports suggest that about 48 trainees may have been killed along with the seven policemen.
The DPO said the attackers began by ramming an explosives-laden truck into the main gate of the training centre, causing a massive blast, followed by armed men attempting to enter the premises. After an intense five-hour battle, all six attackers were reportedly killed in a clearance operation carried out by SSG Commandos, Al Buraq Force, and Elite Force personnel. Authorities reported recovering suicide vests, explosives, sophisticated weapons, and ammunition from the attackers.
The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), through its affiliate media Zarb-e-Momin, initially claimed responsibility for the attack but later retracted the statement, saying the operation had been mistakenly included in its October 10 list and that it had no involvement. Subsequently, a previously unknown group calling itself the Tahafuz-e-Imarat-e-Islami Force (TIF) claimed responsibility online, with a spokesperson identifying himself as Mufti Abu Khalid Usmani.
The attack occurred a day after unidentified fighter jets and drones reportedly carried out airstrikes in four Afghan provinces, including Kabul and Paktika. The Taliban administration in Afghanistan blamed Pakistan for the strikes. Reuters quoted a Pakistani security official as saying that a vehicle belonging to TTP leader Noor Wali Mehsud was targeted in Kabul, though it was unclear whether he survived. Later, an audio message surfaced on social media, allegedly from Mehsud, denying reports of his death and stating that he was alive in the tribal areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
An Afghan Defence Ministry statement described the airstrikes as “an unprecedented, violent and provocative act in the history of Afghanistan and Pakistan” and warned that any further escalation would be the responsibility of the Pakistani military.
Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, spokesperson for the Pakistani military, acknowledged the reports, saying: “To protect the lives of the people of Pakistan, we are doing, and will continue to do, whatever is necessary. Our demand to Afghanistan: Your soil must not be used for terrorism against Pakistan.”
The strikes coincided with Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister on his first official five-day visit to India. Pakistan has accused India of supporting the TTP via Afghanistan, a claim India and Afghanistan have denied, calling it “baseless”.