According to a local official who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the early-morning strike targeted a base in the Dera Ismail Khan region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, close the Afghan border.
An official confirmed that at least 23 people were killed in a suicide bombing at a Pakistan army installation on Tuesday, in an incident claimed by terrorists connected with the Pakistani Taliban. According to a local official who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the early-morning strike targeted a base in the Dera Ismail Khan region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, close the Afghan border. “Many of them were killed while they were sleeping and in civilian clothes so we are still determining if they are all military personnel,” the spokesman said.
He claimed the explosive-laden suicide car detonated at a school building that had been commandeered as a makeshift military outpost, injuring an additional 27 people. Three rooms had collapsed, and attempts were underway to recover remains from the ruins, with fears that the death toll could rise even higher, he added. The assault began about 2:30 a.m. (2130 GMT) with a “martyrdom attack” by one fighter before others entered the facility, according to Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan, a new group affiliated with the Pakistan Taliban.
The Pakistani army has yet to comment on the event.
Since the Taliban retook power in Afghanistan in 2021, Pakistan has seen a sharp increase in militant strikes, primarily along its border with Afghanistan. According to analysts, the success of the adjacent insurgency following the withdrawal of US forces in 2021 has emboldened Islamist fighters. The Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies, attacks increased by about 80% in the first half of 2023 compared to the same period last year. Islamabad claims hostile groups operate from “sanctuaries” across the border, something the Taliban authority consistently rejects. The most serious threat to Pakistan is the local Taliban chapter, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which shares genealogy and ideology with Kabul’s government.
The TTP was linked to a mosque explosion that killed more than 80 police personnel inside a headquarters in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, in January. According to Islamabad, four servicemen were killed in September during a cross-border attack in Chitral by “hundreds” of TTP terrorists.