PESHAWAR: The law and order situation has taken an ugly turn in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with four major attacks reported within 10 days and frequent target killings of police and security personnel.
The current month has proved more volatile as four major attacks were reported in different parts of the province, indicating a spillover of violence from the southern districts to other areas of KP.
In the first incident, renowned religious scholar Maulana Sheikh Idrees was martyred in a targeted attack in Charsadda on May 5. This was followed by a major suicide attack on the Fateh Khel police post in Bannu, which claimed the lives of over 15 policemen.
A day later, a powerful blast was reported in Serai Naurang, where nine people, including two policemen, were martyred.
The other night, an attack was reported on a security forces post in Bajaur that claimed a few lives. Officials said nine terrorists were also gunned down by the security personnel as the attack was thwarted.
All this happened within 10 days in different areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Police have been put on high alert across the province following more threats. The cops in Peshawar are on high alert after serious threats of attacks.
Apart from the major attacks, the targeted killing of police and security forces is going on unabated. Two policemen were martyred in Peshawar’s Hassan Khel and Khyber district on Friday. Many are concerned about the law and order in Hassankhel, the surroundings of Peshawar, and the Khyber district.
The same is happening in the Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan divisions for the last many months.
Over 580 policemen have lost their lives in suicide attacks, bomb blasts, ambushes, encounters, and other incidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since 2023, after an alarming increase in attacks on the cops. The law and order situation has witnessed further deterioration in the last few weeks.
As many as 159 policemen were martyred in 2025. The number is slightly high compared to the corresponding year, as 153 cops were martyred in 2024. As many as 186 policemen were martyred in 2023.
A further increase in attacks on the police force in the southern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been witnessed during the current year.
As many as 86 policemen have embraced martyrdom in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the current year. Many have been kidnapped, families of others attacked, causing anger among the entire force, especially in Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan divisions.
Attacks on police and security forces have been reported frequently since mid-2021. These attacks have further intensified in the last few months in most of the districts of the two divisions, Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan, claiming several lives and causing injuries.
In 2025, the police force came under attack 536 times. The number of attacks was 48percent more compared to the incidents in 2024. Besides, 324 attacks were thwarted during that year, which was an increase of 83percent compared to 2024.
During the first three months of 2026, the police force was attacked 194 times, mostly in Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan divisions. Police officials said over 108 of these attacks were foiled. Attacks have further intensified during the months of April and May.
The attacks on police in KP had started recording a surge since mid-2021, but the number of casualties went high in 2023. Over 86 policemen were martyred in one incident when a suicide bomber detonated explosives around his vest at the central mosque of the Malik Saad Shaheed Police Lines, the headquarters of the Peshawar Police, in January 2023.
More than 200 policemen were wounded in the incident, considered to be the biggest attack on police in Pakistan.
