Suicide car bombing in Pakistan kills 14 soldiers and injures 25 people
The attack targeted a military vehicle in North Waziristan around lunchtime despite a curfew across the tribal district to facilitate the movement of security forces, the intelligence officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the issue with the media.
An initial investigation said 1,760 pounds of explosives were used in the assault, causing severe damage to houses in the area.
The wounded were 15 soldiers and 10 civilians, including children, the officials said. Pakistan's military gave lower casualty figures, saying the attack killed 13 soldiers and wounded three civilians. It blamed the incident on rival India, without providing evidence.
Footage of the blast in Khadi village showed bandaged children lying on the floor near shattered glass and debris.
A Pakistani Taliban faction, the Hafiz Gul Bahadur group, claimed responsibility for the bombing.
Northwest Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province is home to several outlawed militant groups that frequently attack security personnel. Pakistan blames Afghanistan for giving them haven, a charge denied by Kabul.
In March, Pakistani analyst Abdullah Khan told The Associated Press that the Hafiz Gul Bahadur faction was 'more lethal' than the Pakistani Taliban and was competing with them.
Khan, the managing director of the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies, also said there was a revival of banned organizations like Lashkar-e-Islam, which operates from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, contributing to an overall escalation of militant activity in Pakistan.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
a day ago
- The Independent
Mortar kills 2 children and their mother in northwest Pakistan where troops are targeting militants
A mortar struck a home and killed two children and their mother in a northwestern Pakistani region where security forces are carrying out a 'targeted operation ' against the Pakistani Taliban, residents and a hospital official said Wednesday. It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the overnight civilian casualties in Mamund, a town in the Bajaur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan. Naseeb Gul, a medical doctor at a local hospital, said the dead were two children and their mother. Two people were also wounded Tuesday when another mortar hit their home, he said. Angered by the deaths, hundreds of demonstrators were refusing to bury the bodies and demanding an investigation, according to local villager Mohammad Khalid. There was no immediate comment from the government or the military. The latest development came days after security forces launched an offensive in Bajaur to target militant hideouts. The provincial government said the 'targeted operation' was launched after tribal elders failed to evict insurgents from the region. Government officials said the ongoing offensive against the Pakistani Taliban has displaced 25,000 families or an estimated 100,000 people in Bajaur, where authorities eased a curfew on Wednesday, allowing residents to buy essential items. Thousands of displaced people are currently residing in government buildings, and many other have gone to other safer areas to live with relatives. The Bajaur offensive is the second operation there since 2009, when the military launched a large-scale campaign against the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP. The TTP is a separate but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021. Many TTP leaders and fighters have found sanctuary in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover and have been living there openly. Some have crossed the border back into Bajaur to carry out attacks. ___ Associated Press writers Riaz Khan and Rasool Dawar contributed to this story from Peshawar, Pakistan.
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Daily Mail
UK trade envoy to Turkey's trip to Northern Cyprus turns into a full diplomatic row - as pressure piles on Sir Keir Starmer to sack him
A visit by the UK's Turkey trade envoy to Northern Cyprus has escalated into a diplomatic spat. The Greek Cypriot government condemned the 'unacceptable' trip by Labour's Afzal Khan, piling pressure on Sir Keir Starmer to sack him. Britain, in common with the rest of the world barring Turkey, does not recognise the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Despite this, the MP for Manchester Rusholme has this week visited the breakaway statelet to the fury of Greek Cypriots, who accused him of breaking international agreements. They regard the Turkish-controlled north as a rogue state and have called for the 30,000 troops stationed there to leave. Yesterday, anger increased over the trip, which saw Mr Khan meet the leader of Northern Cyprus in his official residence. Konstantinos Letymbiotis, a spokesman for the Nicosia government, said the visit was 'absolutely condemnable and unacceptable' as he insisted UK officials should 'respect' the state of Cyprus. He claimed Mr Khan's actions 'constitute an attempt to create false impressions and are in complete contradiction with the established position of all British governments'. Mr Letymbiotis said: 'We expect all UK officials to show respect for their country's policy as well as for the bilateral relations between Cyprus and the UK.' Cyprus has been a divided island for more than 50 years following a Turkish invasion that left hundreds dead and thousands displaced. The Tories have written to foreign minister Stephen Doughty calling for Mr Khan to be dismissed from his role, saying the trip sent a 'worrying signal'. Wendy Morton, shadow foreign affairs minister, wrote: 'This visit risks undermining the UK's credibility as a guarantor power and as an impartial interlocutor in settlement negotiations.' The Prime Minister's spokesman has said the visit was carried out in a 'personal capacity'. Ersin Tatar, the leader of Northern Cyprus, also waded into the row by criticising the 'intolerant statements and excessive attacks made by the Greek Cypriot side'. He said the visit was undertaken 'at my invitation'. Mr Khan's has also angered the National Federation of Cypriots in the UK, which represents more than 300,000 British citizens of Cypriot origin. The Foreign Office did not respond to requests for comment.
BBC News
2 days ago
- BBC News
Knife crime and other offences fall in London, says Sir Sadiq Khan
Sir Sadiq Khan has admitted there is a "long way to go" when it comes to fighting crime in London, despite figures suggesting a potential drop in some serious mayor says new City Hall data shows knife crime dropped by 19% between April and June this year compared with the same period last year, while the number of residential burglaries, personal thefts and personal robberies also some offences, such as possession of weapons, rape and drug trafficking, all increased in that recorded crime has increased by 31.5 % in the Metropolitan Police area of London in the last 10 years, with violent crime increasing by 40%, according to official crime data. The data from the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime - which is not yet publicly available - appears to show annual falls in:Theft from a person from 25,272 to 21,937 (13%)Robbery of personal property from 7,106 to 6,209 (13%)Residential burglary from 7,974 to 7,144 (10%)The mayor of London said: "The latest figures show robbery, theft, residential burglary and knife crime are down in London, but there's still a long way to go before I'm satisfied."Backed with record funding from City Hall, the Met is putting high-visibility policing at the heart of fighting crime." 'Crime is up' According to the Office for National Statistics, many crimes recorded against people increased between the years ending June 2015 and March 2025, including violence against the person (40%), possession of offensive weapons (23%), sexual offences (75%) and theft from the person (207%).Reform UK Assembly Member Alex Wilson told the Local Democracy Reporting Service : "If Sadiq Khan thinks London is getting more safe, he needs to get out more. "The idea he points to incremental changes in just a few categories is ridiculous.""The long-term trends under Sadiq Khan are clear: knife crime is up, theft is up, shoplifting is up, fare evasion is up, phone thefts at the highest ever seen, and just 2% of burglaries in outer London result in a charge or analysis of the figures comes soon after the Metropolitan Police laid out proposals to close almost half of police station front counters in London - a move critics said would have a "devastating" impact on Met's commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, has said despite funding increases, the forces faces a £260m shortfall and will have to reduce its he said the force was becoming "more capable" and was focused on "driving down crime on issues that matter most to Londoners".The Mayor of London has pledged a policing blitz on London's 20 most blighted town centres for shoplifting, robbery, knife crime and antisocial behaviour this summer.
