A wave of Pakistani Taliban (TTP) attacks across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa left at least 23 people dead, including 20 security officers and three civilians, in one of the deadliest nights this year. The coordinated assault featured a suicide car bombing on a police training facility and separate firefights, underscoring the province’s spiralling insurgency and the dangerous cross-border rift with Afghanistan.

Coordinated Strikes in Khyber and Bajaur

Officials said a suicide bomber drove an explosives-laden vehicle into a police training school gate, followed by gunmen opening fire and killing seven policemen after hours of clashes. In Khyber, 11 paramilitary troops died, and a Bajaur clash killed five, including three civilians. The TTP claimed responsibility for the coordinated border attacks. Security forces later killed several assailants, seized weapons and suicide vests, and reported over a dozen wounded treated overnight for blast and gunshot injuries.

Cross-Border Tensions Flare

Hours before the attacks, Afghanistan’s Taliban government accused Pakistan of “violating Kabul’s sovereign territory” after explosions in the capital—a claim Pakistan did not confirm, while reaffirming its right to act against cross-border militancy. The phrase marked a sharp rise in rhetoric amid recurring frontier-linked assaults. Analysts note increased TTP activity since the Taliban’s 2021 return, with Islamabad urging Kabul to rein in groups using Afghan territory. The latest alleged airstrike on Kabul, denied or unconfirmed by Pakistan, adds a volatile diplomatic layer to the ongoing conflict.

Security Response and Rising Toll

Pakistan’s military and police carried out follow-on raids in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, killing dozens of militants in “retribution” operations linked to earlier convoy ambushes. Interior officials lauded officers’ “bravery” as reinforcements secured the training site and nearby areas. Casualty counts were still shifting by Saturday, and more raids were expected. Militancy has risen across the province since 2021, with thousands of operations this year amid warnings that complex attacks combining bombings and gunfire will persist without stronger cross-border cooperation.