HANGU: A pair of coordinated bomb blasts struck Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Hangu district on Friday, resulting in the martyrdom of at least three policemen, including SP Operations Asad Zubair, according to police officials.
District Police Officer Khanzeb Mohmand confirmed that three personnel were also injured when the second explosion targeted the police vehicle transporting a team to inspect an earlier blast site. The wounded were shifted to DHQ Hospital Hangu for treatment.
The first explosion occurred near a police checkpoint in Ghulmina, damaging a nearby room but causing no casualties. Approximately two kilometres away in Darband, the second device detonated as the police team arrived, killing SP Zubair and three members of his security team.
Following the incident, a bomb disposal squad and police commandos initiated a comprehensive search operation in the surrounding area.Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the attack and expressed profound grief over the loss of SP Asad Zubair and two other policemen. He noted that their sacrifices represented the highest form of service to the nation and vowed that their blood would not be shed in vain.Pakistan has experienced a marked escalation in militant violence since the return of Taliban rule in Afghanistan in 2021. The bordering provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan remain the most affected, accounting for more than 96 percent of nationwide terrorism incidents.
According to data from the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), militant attacks surged by 74 percent in August compared with the previous month, resulting in 194 fatalities.
