At least five police personnel were martyred on Tuesday when a police mobile came under attack in the Gurguri area of Karak district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), officials confirmed.
District police spokesperson Shaukat Khan said that all the victims were constables and were on routine duty when the attack took place. The martyred policemen were identified as Shahid Iqbal, Samiullah, Arif, Safdar and Muhammad Abrar, who was also driving the police vehicle at the time of the incident.
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According to police officials, the exact nature of the attack is still being investigated. However, images shared by the police showed the mobile badly damaged and reduced to charred remains, indicating the intensity of the assault.
کرک په ګرګرئ سيمه کې په پولیس ګاډي دهشت ګردو حمله اوکړه چې پکې پنځه پولیس وژلو خبر راځي. په کرک کې د امن امنيت په يؤ منظم ډول ورځ تر بله په يو پري پلېن خرابيږي.#PashtunRejectMilitarization #StopPashtunGenocide #PTMNationalResistance #PTMKarak pic.twitter.com/yq6Bla3TwQ
— PTM KARAK (@KARAKPTM) December 23, 2025
Following the incident, a heavy police contingent, including the district police officer (DPO), rushed to the site. A search and clearance operation was launched in the surrounding areas to trace those responsible for the attack. Security in Karak and nearby districts has also been tightened.
This incident is part of a troubling rise in attacks targeting law enforcement personnel in southern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Just last week, a police official and his brother were martyred in a gun attack in Lakki Marwat. Earlier this month, a suicide bombing targeting a police mobile in the same district killed one policeman and injured five others. In November, three policemen were martyred during an attack on a police checkpost in Hangu.
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Senior police officials have vowed to bring the perpetrators to justice, stating that such attacks will not weaken the resolve of law enforcement agencies to maintain peace and security in the province.