7 military personnel killed in multiple suicide bombings, clashes in NW Pakistan

By Islamuddin Sajid

ISLAMABAD (AA) – Seven Pakistani military personnel, including two officers, were killed in multiple suicide bombings at a security post, and an exchange of heavy fire in the tribal district of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province near the Afghan border early Saturday morning.

In the early hours, a group of six terrorists attacked a security post in the Mir Ali area of North Waziristan tribal district, the Pakistan Army's media wing said in a statement, adding that soldiers foiled the terrorists' first attempt.

"The terrorists rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into the post, followed by multiple suicide bombing attacks, which led to the collapse of a portion of a building, resulting in Shahadat (martyrdoms) of five brave sons of the soil," it said. Later, security forces conducted an operation against the militants, killing them all.

Nevertheless, during the intense exchange of fire between forces and militants, two army officers, Lieutenant Colonel Syed Kashif Ali and Captain Muhammad Ahmed Badar, were killed, said the statement.

Pakistan has encountered a spike in terrorist attacks since the Afghan Taliban recaptured Kabul in Aug. 2021.

Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of failing to prevent militants from the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a conglomerate of various militant groups, from carrying out attacks in Pakistan before returning to Afghanistan for refuge.

Afghanistan, on the other hand, has denied the charges, reaffirming its commitment not to allow its soil to be used against any nation.