Latest news with #militantattacks
Arab News
3 days ago
- Politics
- Arab News
Pakistani militants kill six policemen in eight targeted attacks in one night
PESHAWAR, Pakistan: Militants in Pakistan's northwest carried out eight overnight gun and grenade attacks targeting the police, killing six officers, an official said on Thursday. The attacks targeted police stations, checkpoints and patrols across seven districts in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, police officer Mohammad Ali Babakhel said, as the nation of 240 million people celebrated its 78th independence day. The militants used rocket-propelled grenade launchers in some of the attacks, he said, adding six officers were killed and another nine injured. A spike in the attacks in recent months is a tough challenge to handle for the overstretched and under-equipped police force, the frontline against militant attacks. The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a Pakistani militant group with links to the Afghan Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attacks. The TTP is an umbrella group of several groups. It has been fighting against the state since 2007 in a bid to overthrow the government and replace it with its version of Islamic law. Attacks have accelerated since the TTP revoked a ceasefire with the Pakistani government in late 2022. In 2024, militants carried out 335 countrywide attacks, killing 520 people, according to the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies, an independent organization. Pakistan says the militants operate out of neighboring Afghanistan, where they train fighters and plan attacks, a charge Kabul has denied.
BBC News
20-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Niger attack: More than 200 gunmen on motorbikes storm army base in Banibangou
More than 200 gunmen on motorbikes have attacked a Niger army base near the border with Mali, leaving at least 34 soldiers dead, the country's defence ministry said. The attackers - described by the ministry as "mercenaries" - raided the base in the western town of Banibangou on Thursday, injuring 14 other soldiers. The ministry said that its forces killed "dozens of terrorists" in the military is under pressure for failing to curb militant attacks, one of its justifications for deposing democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum in 2023. "This Thursday, June 19, a cowardly and barbaric attack was carried out against [the town of] Banibangou by a horde of several hundred mercenaries aboard eight vehicles and more than 200 motorbikes," the ministry said in a statement read out on state added that the troops were conducting search operations in Banibangou to track down the region with more 'terror deaths' than rest of world combinedNiger military leaders to nationalise uranium firmThe town, which lies close to the three-way border between Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso, is prone to jihadist attacks from Islamist groups. Niger's ruling junta has expelled French and US forces that had been heavily involved in the fight against jihadists. West African neighbours Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali are facing an insurgency from different jihadist groups which operate across the Sahel region. The three countries have formed an alliance to fight the jihadists and scaled back ties with the West, turning to Russia and Turkey instead for their security the violence has continued. You may also be interested in: WATCH: How has Niger changed since the coup?Three military-run states leave West African bloc - what will change?'I thought I would die' - freed captive tells BBC of life in West African jihadist basePODCAST: The Sahel's coup contagion Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
Arab News
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
A look at recent deadly attacks in Pakistan as it battles rising militancy
Following are some recent deadly attacks in Pakistan, where the government is facing insurgencies on two fronts — militant attacks in the northwest and a growing separatist insurgency in the south. MAY 21, 2025 At least three children were among five people killed when a suicide bomber targeted an army school bus in the restive Pakistani southwestern province of Balochistan, in an attack the military blamed on Indian proxies. The Indian government did not respond to a request for comment on the accusation. MARCH 11, 2025 A total of 31 people, including soldiers, staff, and civilians, were killed by militants who hijacked a train as it traveled through a remote mountain pass in Balochistan. The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), the biggest of several ethnic armed groups fighting the government, claimed responsibility. MARCH 4, 2025 Suicide bombers drove two vehicles packed with explosives into a military base in the town of Bannu in the northwest, killing 18 people, including six children. No group claimed responsibility for the violence. NOVEMBER 1, 2024 A blast targeting a police van in Mastung town in Balochistan killed seven people, including five school students, and injured 23 others. No group claimed responsibility. AUGUST 26, 2024 At least 38 civilians and 14 soldiers were killed as separatist militants attacked police stations, railway lines and highways in Balochistan, and security forces launched retaliatory operations. The BLA claimed responsibility for the attacks, the most widespread in the country in years. DECEMBER 12, 2023 At least 57 people, including seven children, died as suicide bombings ripped through two mosques in Mastung while believers marked the birthday of the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh). No group claimed responsibility. JULY 31, 2023 A suicide bombing targeting a hard-line religious group's political rally in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province's Bajaur region killed 56 people. The Daesh militant group claimed responsibility for the blast, which took place in northwestern Pakistan.
