Hangu, October 24, 2025: Three policemen, including a superintendent of police (SP), were martyred in back-to-back blasts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s (KP) Hangu district on Friday, officials confirmed.
KP Inspector General of Police (IGP) Zulfiqar Hameed said the first blast targeted an old police checkpost within the jurisdiction of Baliamina Police Station. The post was usually unmanned, and no casualties occurred in the initial explosion.
As police reinforcements headed to inspect the site, a second improvised explosive device (IED) detonated near their vehicle, killing SP (Operations) Asad Zubair and two other policemen.
Kohat Division’s Regional Police Officer (RPO) Abbas Majeed said the first explosion took place around 2pm, and the second, more powerful blast occurred shortly after as the SP’s convoy approached.
“Fitna al-Khawarij had planted a stronger IED after the first blast,” Majeed said, using the state’s term for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
SP Zubair succumbed to his injuries in hospital, while the two other policemen died on the spot. Security forces later launched a search operation in the area amid fears of more explosives.
Following the incident, KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi sought an immediate report from the IGP and convened an apex committee meeting to review the province’s law and order situation.
In a statement, the chief minister strongly condemned the attack, saying:
“Cowardly acts cannot demoralise our police or counter-terrorism department. The sacrifices of our martyrs will not go in vain.”
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also denounced the attack, paying tribute to the martyred officers and expressing solidarity with their families. Former KP chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur posted on X, mourning the loss and lauding the police’s bravery.
The attack underscores a resurgence in terrorist activities in KP and Balochistan since the TTP ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022.
The Hangu blasts come just days after security forces foiled a TTP attack on Baka Khel Police Station in Bannu on October 19, killing three militants. Similar assaults on police installations were reported in South Waziristan (October 18) and Bannu (October 17), as militants attempt to target law enforcement across the province.
