Pakistan's restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province hit by 179 terrorist attacks in four months

Islamabad: At least 179 terrorism-related incidents took place in Pakistan's restive Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan this year till April-end, according to a media report on Friday.

Quoting the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) figures, the ARY News channel reported that the highest number of terrorist deaths occurred in February with 31 of them killed.

January witnessed 60 terrorism-related incidents, followed by April 48, February 38 and March 33, the report said, citing CTD data.

Additionally, 19 terrorists were killed in Dera Ismail Khan and 14 in North Waziristan, it said, adding that 16 of the killed terrorists were most wanted, including Mohsin Qadir, Azmatullah, and Fareedullah.

Ten attacks were reported on police teams this year, highlighting the challenging security situation in the province.

Last year, the CTD released a report on the terror incidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, stating that 563 terror incidents occurred in 2023 and out of them, police were targeted 243 times. While the highest 132 incidents of terrorism were reported in Dera Ismail Khan, 103 incidents from Khyber and 89 incidents from Peshawar were reported.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province borders Afghanistan where rebels have hideouts. The province has been a target of terrorists who easily cross the porous border and go back after launching attacks, according to Pakistan officials.