At least 11 police officers and 15 militants were killed in an hourlong gunbattle at a police post in northwestern Pakistan's Hangu district early Thursday, authorities reported. The attack occurred in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which shares a border with Afghanistan.
Security forces engaged the militants at the Khazina police post, and the confrontation resulted in the deaths of all 15 attackers, according to police official Irfan Khan. Among the casualties was senior police officer Diyar Khan, who led reinforcements to the scene. More than two dozen police officers sustained injuries during the assault.
Police stated that the militants employed heavy weapons during the attack. Reinforcements dispatched to the area were reportedly ambushed en route, with an armored personnel carrier damaged before officers were able to fight back.
No militant group has immediately claimed responsibility for the assault. However, suspicion is expected to fall on the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), also known as the Pakistani Taliban, which has intensified its attacks on Pakistani security forces in the region in recent months.
Pakistan has experienced a rise in militant violence in recent years, with many incidents attributed to the TTP. The TTP is a distinct group but maintains close ties with the Afghan Taliban, who regained control of Afghanistan in 2021. Islamabad has frequently accused the Afghan Taliban government of harboring TTP militants, an allegation that Kabul denies.