Pakistan: Suicide Car Bombing Near Kohat Police Lines Kills 25, Injures More Than 100

Peshawar (Terror Monitor) — At least 25 people, including 15 police personnel, were killed and 103 others injured in a suicide car bombing near the mosque at the police lines in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Friday, followed by attacks targeting police installations in Kohat district.

According to government sources, 103 injured people were taken to the District Headquarters (DHQ) Hospital in Kohat. The casualties included 73 police personnel and officers and 30 civilians.

District Health Officer Dr. Nasir Hassan Afridi confirmed the deaths and said several of the injured were in critical condition, raising concerns that the death toll could increase.

Witnesses said the explosion was extremely powerful and could be heard from a considerable distance. Footage broadcast by local television channels showed civilians helping rescue people trapped under the rubble and transporting the injured to hospitals.

The blast caused extensive damage to the mosque and nearby buildings, while part of one building collapsed completely.

Vehicle Packed With Explosives Struck Police Lines Entrance

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Inspector General of Police Zulfiqar Hamid said the suicide bomber drove an explosives-laden vehicle into the entrance of the police lines, triggering a powerful explosion.

He said that following the blast, several terrorists attempted to enter the compound and moved toward the building of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD). Security personnel responded quickly and killed the attackers before they could advance further.

According to the police chief, several other attackers attempted to move toward the Special Branch building but were also stopped by security forces.

Authorities said rescue operations have been completed and the injured were transported to hospitals in Kohat and Peshawar. Security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation following the attack.

Group Claims Responsibility

The attack was claimed by a group calling itself Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan. The claim could not immediately be independently verified.

The attack comes amid a recent increase in clashes and militant attacks involving security forces and terrorists in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Echoes of 2023 Peshawar Police Lines Attack

The Kohat attack comes three years after a suicide bombing at a mosque inside the police lines in Peshawar, the provincial capital.

In the 2023 attack, a suicide bomber targeted worshippers at the mosque, killing 101 police officers and personnel.

The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is a separate organization from Afghanistan’s Taliban government, although the two have longstanding ideological and historical ties.

Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Afghan Taliban government of allowing TTP members to operate from Afghan territory and of failing to take effective action against attacks targeting Pakistan. Afghan Taliban authorities have rejected the allegations and maintain that Afghan territory is not being allowed to be used against other countries.