KP: Police constable martyred in militant attack

WEB DESK: A police constable was abducted from his home and later shot dead by terrorists in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Lakki Marwat district, officials confirmed on Wednesday, as Pakistan continues to witness a surge in militant violence.

The incident occurred in the Darga forest in Nasrkhel, near the Sarai Naurang area of Lakki Marwat. District Police Spokesperson Qudratullah said the martyred constable, who was undergoing training at the Hangu Training School, was taken from his house on Tuesday night.

“On Tuesday night, terrorists abducted him from his residence in Nasrkhel, took him to a forest called Darga, and shot him dead,” the spokesperson said.

The constable’s funeral prayers were offered with official honours at the Lakki Marwat Police Lines. District Police Officer (DPO) Nazir Khan, Superintendent of Police (SP) Investigation Murad Khan, senior police officials, district administration officers, and a large number of police personnel attended the funeral.

Paying tribute, DPO Nazir Khan said the martyred officer had set “a shining example of bravery and sacrifice” by laying down his life in the line of duty. “The entire nation is proud of this brave soldier. These cowardly acts of Fitna al-Khawarij cannot weaken our resolve,” he said.

He added that the morale of the Lakki Marwat police remained high and that operations against Fitna al-Khawarij the term used by the state for militants belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) would be further intensified. “No sacrifice will be spared to protect the lives and property of the people, and those involved will be taken to their logical end,” the DPO said.

Pakistan has seen a sharp rise in terrorism since the TTP ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022, vowing to escalate attacks. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan remain the most frequently targeted regions.

Last month, the KP Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) killed three terrorists belonging to Fitna al-Khawarij in an intelligence-based operation in Dera Ismail Khan. Only days earlier, at least nine people, including seven police officials and two civilians, were killed in separate terrorist attacks in Tank and DI Khan districts.

In another development last week, the military’s media wing said security forces killed 11 terrorists in two separate intelligence-based operations in KP. On the same day, a CTD official was martyred in Peshawar, while another police officer was shot dead in Bannu by unidentified assailants.

According to a report by the Islamabad-based Pak Institute for Peace Studies, militant attacks increased by 34 per cent in 2025, while terrorism-related fatalities rose by 21 per cent compared to the previous year, despite record militant deaths during counterterrorism operations.