Death toll from explosion in Pakistan rises to 24 — Anadolu Agency
In Pakistan's Kohat district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the number of people killed in an explosion at a police compound during Friday prayers has risen to 24. The victims include 18 police officers and six civilians, Anadolu Agency reports.
Three injured police officers died
Tahir Ali Shah, head of Kohat district hospital, said that three more police officers had died from their injuries. This brought the death toll to 24.
According to police, a vehicle loaded with explosives crashed into the gates of the Old Police Lines compound in Kohat. The explosion created a crater near a mosque located on the grounds of the police compound.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
Police reported dead attackers
Police said that six people it described as terrorists, including a suicide bomber, were also killed. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial police chief said that another explosion carried out by a suicide bomber occurred in the Special Branch police building during a shootout.
Afghanistan Foreign Ministry spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi condemned the attack in a post on social media platform X. He said that Afghanistan considers attacks on holy places unjustifiable and expressed condolences to the families of those killed.
Separately, Pakistan's state radio reported that the country's security forces killed seven militants during two operations in the southwestern province of Balochistan.
