Peshawar, Oct 10 (PTI) At least two policemen were killed and three injured as suspected militants attacked a police van on patrolling duty in Pakistan’s restive northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Thursday.
The militants ambushed the police van near Pathan Kot in Tank district. The deceased and the injured have been shifted to the District Headquarters Hospital.
The police have launched a search operation to arrest the accused. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur strongly condemned the firing on the police van and expressed condolences over the death of two police officers.
The chief minister announced financial assistance for the families of the slain policemen.
“The police have made exemplary sacrifices for the protection of the lives and property of the people. Such cowardly actions will not weaken the morale of the police,” he said.
On Wednesday, a local Shia community leader was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in the province, police said.
Hamid Askari from Orakzai tribal district was killed by two unknown assailants on Old Jail Road in the Kohat district, they said. Meanwhile, a Frontier Corps (FC) soldier, who was on leave and visiting his family, was abducted from the Tank district on Wednesday.
The Pakistani Taliban-affiliated channels claimed responsibility for the abduction. PTI AYZ