Islamabad, March 13 – At least six police personnel were killed and one injured in an explosion near a police vehicle in the Bettani tribal area of Lakki Marwat district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan, according to local media reports.
According to a spokesperson for the local police, the explosion occurred near a police mobile, resulting in the death of six police personnel and the injury of one policeman. The spokesperson further stated that additional police personnel were deployed at the scene to secure the area and assist in further response measures, Geo News, Pakistan's leading media outlet, reported.
Since the Taliban seized power in Kabul, Pakistan has witnessed an increase in cross-border terrorist activity, particularly in the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, which share a border with Afghanistan.
Pakistan launched Operation 'Ghazab lil-Haq' in response to the terror incidents and has claimed that at least 641 Afghan Taliban fighters have been killed in strikes conducted along the border and in Afghanistan, Geo News reported. Prior to this operation, Pakistan launched airstrikes in the provinces of Nangarhar, Paktika, and Khost in Afghanistan. The Taliban has accused Pakistan of carrying out deadly airstrikes in residential areas of the Nangarhar and Paktika provinces, resulting in the death of several civilians.
On March 8, a senior officer of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) was killed after unidentified assailants opened fire on him in the Killi Ismail area of Quetta, Pakistan, according to local media reports.
The police stated that Inspector Metha Khan, who recently joined CTD, was shot by armed men when he was passing through the Killi Ismail area on March 8, Dawn, Pakistan's leading daily, reported. A senior police officer stated that the CTD officer died on the spot after the armed men on motorcycles opened fire at him.
The official further said that the gunmen escaped from the scene following the incident. Law enforcement personnel cordoned off the area and started a search operation to apprehend the attackers.
Meanwhile, a report released by an Islamabad-based think tank revealed that combat-related deaths in Pakistan increased by 30 per cent in February, due to a rise in suicide attacks across the country.
A report by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) revealed that 470 deaths and 333 injuries were documented in February. The victims included 96 civilians, 80 security forces personnel, and 294 militants. The injured included 259 civilians, 50 security forces personnel, and 24 militants, Dawn reported.
These figures represent a 74 per cent increase in the deaths of security forces personnel, a 32 per cent increase in civilian deaths, and a 21 per cent surge in militant deaths compared to January.
As many as 53 security forces personnel and six civilians were killed, while 35 security personnel and 48 civilians were injured in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in February. Three suicide bombing incidents took place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which claimed 17 lives, including that of 14 security forces personnel, and injured 20 people.
As many as 34 people were killed and 165 others were injured in a suicide bombing incident in Islamabad. Furthermore, two police personnel were killed and four others were injured in a suicide bombing in the Bhakkar district of Punjab province, Dawn reported. The eight suicide attacks reported in January and February this year represent nearly half of the total for the entire year 2025, when 17 such incidents were reported.
According to data released by PICSS, the first two months of 2026 witnessed 831 combat-related deaths, including 536 militants, 169 civilians, and 126 security forces personnel.