At least seven security officials, including an Army captain, were martyred on Sunday after an improvised explosive device (IED) targeted their vehicle in Lakki Marwat, according to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
Local officials said the targeted vehicle was traveling to the Kaichi Kamar area when it was attacked near Sultankhel village, an area bordering Punjab’s Mianwali district. As a result, said the military’s media wing, Capt. Muhammad Faraz Ilyas, 26, resident of Kasur district; Subedar Maj. Muhammad Nazir, 50, resident of Skardu district; Lance Naik Muhammad Anwar, 34, resident of Ghanchi district; Lance Naik Hussain Ali, 36, resident of Ghizer district; Sepoy Asadullah, 33, resident of Multan district; Sepoy Manzoor Hussain, 27, resident of Gilgit district; and Sepoy Rashid Mehmood, 31, resident of Rawalpindi district embraced martyrdom.
The ISPR said authorities had launched a sanitization operation in the area to eliminate any terrorists present in the area, adding perpetrators of the heinous act would be brought to justice. “Security forces of Pakistan are determined to eliminate the menace of terrorism and such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further strengthen our resolve,” it added.
“Deeply saddened by the martyrdom of Pak Army personnel including a Captain in a targeted attack in Lakki Marwat District,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote in a post on X. “The sacrifices of our brave soldiers and citizens is a debt on us that we must repay by relentlessly eliminating terrorism from our nation. Heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families,” he added. The premier also attended the funeral sprayers of the captain in his native town on Monday morning.
Similarly, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi and Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur strongly condemned the attack.
Pakistan is currently in the midst of resurgent terrorism, with the militancy most apparent in regions bordering Afghanistan in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces. According to a report issued by the Centre for Research and Security Studies, at least 92 percent of all fatalities and 86 percent of attacks in the first quarter of 2024 were recorded in the provinces.