At least 16 people were killed when a suicide attacker rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the Old Police Lines compound in Kohat, northwestern Pakistan, during Friday prayers, provincial police confirmed. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) police chief Zulfikar Hameed told reporters, "It was a suicide attack."
The vehicle detonated near a mosque inside the compound where police personnel, family members and civilians had gathered for Friday, 18 September, congregational prayers, Hameed confirmed. Gunmen accompanied the vehicle and opened fire after the blast, according to Hameed. Seven armed militants attempted to infiltrate the compound following the explosion, Dawn and The Express Tribune reported, citing KP police.
Clearance operation and casualties
Security forces killed six of the seven attackers, including one suicide bomber wearing an explosives vest, according to a KP Police statement reported by Dawn and The Express Tribune. Hameed personally supervised the operation, per The Express Tribune. Dawn reported the clearance operation entered its "final stages" around 3:30pm local time.
Kohat District Headquarters Hospital declared an emergency, according to Geo News. The confirmed toll stood at 16 dead, five of them police officers and 11 civilians, per Dawn's reporting. The Express Tribune, citing KP police officials, put the wounded at 57. Dr. Tahir Shah, a hospital official, told dpa via Al Jazeera the death toll may rise, with several patients in critical condition. The mosque's roof partially collapsed and the compound's outer wall was destroyed, Dawn and AP reported.
Observers are reading: Full details on the militant group's claim, its leadership, and how Friday's toll compares to Pakistan's deadliest recent attacks.
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Officials respond as rescue operations continue
President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the attack and called elimination of "foreign-sponsored terrorists" essential to national security, Dawn and BBC reported. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed authorities to accelerate rescue operations, per Radio Pakistan. Rescue 1122 deployed 14 ambulances and more than 45 personnel, The Express Tribune reported, as the Kohat-Hangu road remained closed during ongoing search operations, PTI reported.
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