Peshawar: Four people, including a cleric, were injured in a blast at a seminary cum mosque in Pakistan's restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Saturday, less than 24 hours after a bomb exploded during Friday prayers at another mosque in the province. The blast occurred at a religious seminary in Urmur Bala village in Peshawar district, police said. Mufti Munir Shakir sustained minor injuries after being hit on the left foot. Three others also sustained injuries in the blast. A police contingent rushed to the blast site and cordoned off the entire area.
On Friday, an improvised explosive device (IED) exploded at Maulana Abdul Aziz Mosque in South Waziristan, injuring Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) district chief Maulana Abdullah Nadeem among others. Mosques, particularly during Friday prayers when large congregations gather, have been targeted in the province in the past as well.
JUI-S leader killed last month
Last month, six people, including JUI-S leader Maulana Hamidul Haq Haqqani, were killed and 15 injured when a suicide blast ripped through the Darul Uloom Haqqania seminary in the province.
At least nine militants and two security personnel were killed in two separate engagements in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, an ISPR statement said on Saturday. Seven terrorists were killed when security forces conducted an intelligence-based operation in Mohmand district on Friday night, the ISPR said.
However, two soldiers were also killed during the intense fire exchange, the statement said.
In another encounter in the Maddi area of Dera Ismail Khan district, two terrorists were killed in the exchange of fire between security personnel and militants, the statement said. The ISPR said weapons and ammunition were also recovered from the possession of the killed militants, who were actively involved in numerous terrorist activities across the province.
It said sanitization operations were ongoing to eliminate the presence of any other militants in the area.
Surge in Pakistan terrorism
Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities recently, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces, after the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militant group ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022. February saw a marginal increase in terrorist attacks but a sharp surge in civilian casualties, according to a report published by an Islamabad-based think tank, thePakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS).
According to PICSS, the country witnessed 79 terrorist attacks last month, resulting in the deaths of 55 civilians and 47 security personnel, while 45 civilians and 81 security personnel were injured.
(With inputs from agencies)