Islamist militants kill 10 police officers in northwest Pakistan, say police

By Saud Mehsud

DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan, July 30 (Reuters) – A drone attack and ambush by Islamist militants at a police post in northwest Pakistan killed at least 10 officers, police said, the second such assault within a week.  

The attack took place late on Wednesday in ⁠the Hangu district near the Afghan border, an ​area that has long served as home to militant groups.

Militancy in Pakistan’s border areas has risen sharply in recent months, targeting mainly the military and police after an armed conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan killed hundreds.

Islamabad says the militants use safe ​havens ⁠in Afghanistan to train and plan attacks in Pakistan. Afghanistan’s Taliban government has denied the charge and said militancy is Pakistan’s ⁠domestic problem.

The militants ambushed the police check post after hitting it with improvised explosive devices attached to quadcopters, police said in a statement.  

Ten officers and 15 of the attackers were killed in several hours of fighting, said Zulfikar Hameed, the provincial police chief. 

The Islamist militants have in recent months started using the quadcopters to target security forces in the border areas.       

No group has claimed responsibility for the latest attack, which came days after a suicide bombing killed 15, including 12 Pakistani army soldiers in the nearby district of Tank. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or Pakistan Taliban, claimed responsibility for the suicide attack.

The group has been waging an insurgency against the Pakistani ​state since 2007 ​in an ⁠attempt to overthrow the government and replace it with their own brand of strict ​Islamic governance. 

Militant attacks have surged along Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan and have the potential to reignite fighting between the neighbours. The allies-turned-foes engaged in their worst fighting in years in February, with Pakistan carrying out airstrikes ​inside Afghanistan.

(Reporting by Saud Mehsud in Dera Ismail Khan; Additional reporting by Mushtaq Ali in Peshawar; Writing by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Saad Sayeed)