Constable killed, three police abducted in attack on Hangu post
Militants attacked a police post on Shah Almas Pir hill in Hangu, killing one constable and abducting three personnel. Police say they have regained control of the post and are pursuing the attackers.
- One constable, Feroz Ali, was killed in the attack on the Hangu police post.
- Three police personnel were abducted and taken toward the Samana range, the DPO said.
- Police regained control of the post and a pursuit operation continues.
Militants attacked a police post on Shah Almas Pir hill in Hangu district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on Sunday night. One police constable was killed and three other personnel were abducted, according to reports by The Express Tribune, Express News and Daily Jang.
Police and other forces reached the site in large numbers, and an exchange of fire continued, Express News reported. Police later regained control of the post.
District Police Officer Salahuddin Kundi said police personnel regained control of the post on Shah Almas Pir Mountain and launched a pursuit operation against the attackers. He said the attackers took the three abducted personnel toward Khanano Kot in the Samana mountain range.
The Express Tribune named the dead constable as Feroz Ali. His funeral prayers were held with full state honours at Police Lines Hangu. The District Police Officer, army officers and police officers attended, and officers placed floral wreaths on his body.
His body was then taken to his ancestral village, Ibrahimzai. The reports do not say who carried out the attack, and no group is named in them.
The Express Tribune also listed recent attacks on police in the province. On October 8, an SHO and a gunman were killed in firing on a patrol near the Karak-Kohat boundary. On September 28, three traffic police personnel were killed in Tank district.
On September 25, a CTD constable was killed and three personnel were injured in an operation in Garhi Sherdad, Peshawar. On September 18, a blast and assault at Kohat Police Lines killed 15 police personnel among 23 people, and eight attackers were killed in the clearance operation.
The search for the fleeing attackers and the three abducted policemen is continuing, according to officials quoted in the reports.
Background
khabr.pk reported on 9 November that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa plans faceless anti-terrorism courts and says Rs70 billion will go to the police and the Counter-Terrorism Department this year. On 8 November, khabr.pk reported that a new plan proposes Rs59.8 billion for the police and Rs10.3 billion for the CTD.
Why it matters
The attack adds to a series of assaults on police in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reported over recent weeks. Police personnel and their families in the province are directly exposed to such attacks. The families of the three abducted personnel are awaiting news of them. The attacks bear on security policing across Pakistan.
