An attack on a Pakistani army base by militants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, near the Afghanistan border, resulted in the deaths of 23 soldiers and injuries to many.
The early-morning assault involved an explosives-laden vehicle ramming into the compound. The Pakistani Taliban-affiliated group Tahreek-e-Jihad Pakistan has claimed the attack.
Militants tried but failed to infiltrate the compound in Dera Ismail Khan district before using a bomb-equipped truck to breach the wall, leading to a collapse after a subsequent suicide bombing. Concerns were raised about possible explosions of stored ammunition. Reports indicate multiple fatalities occurred while victims were asleep.
In response, the military reported six attackers dead and a total of 27 militants killed in overnight operations. Condemnations came from Pakistan's interim leaders Prime Minister Anwaar ul-Haq Kakar and Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti.
This incident reflects a spike in militant violence in Pakistan's border regions, attributed to the TTP's emboldenment by the Afghan Taliban. Islamabad accuses insurgents of operating from across the border, which the Taliban government in
Afghanistan denies. The TTP has a history of assaults on Pakistani security forces and differs from but shares ideology with the Afghan Taliban.
Earlier, at least 100 people perished in a mosque bombing in Peshawar, an attack the TTP denied, citing a splinter group's leader as the perpetrator.