At least 10 policemen, including DSP, martyred in terrorist attack on Kohat police team

PESHAWAR BUREAU —At least 10 police personnel, including a deputy superintendent of police (DSP) and a sub-inspector, were killed when terrorists attacked a police team during an operation against illegal gold mining in Kohat's Gambat area on Wednesday, Kohat police spokesperson Muhammad Nauman Zeb said. According to the spokesperson, the police team was heading to conduct a raid against illegal mining when it came under fire in the Darbokach Jalandhar Banda area, located between Kohat and Karak.

Initial reports suggested that the attackers opened fire on police personnel from hilltops, resulting in casualties and damage to police vehicles. Zeb identified DSP Gambat Haider Zaman and Sub-Inspector Mukhtiar among those killed in the attack. Five police mobile vehicles were also set on fire during the assault.

The police spokesperson said the attackers continued firing at police personnel, resulting in a heavy exchange of fire. Additional police vehicles were dispatched to the scene, while a heavy police contingent was called in to respond to the attack. Read: Afghan national arrested in Tirah Valley for plotting terrorist attacks in Pakistan: K-P police Security was placed on high alert in the area as further reinforcements were sent to the scene.

Following the attack in Kohat's Gambat tehsil, an emergency was declared at the District Headquarters Teaching Hospital, he added. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) has witnessed a series of attacks targeting police personnel in recent months. On October 8, Station House Officer Daud Khan and his gunman, Farhad, were martyred when armed men opened fire on a police patrol near the Karak-Kohat boundary.

Earlier, on September 28, three traffic police personnel were killed when unidentified gunmen attacked their vehicle in Tank district. On September 25, Counter-Terrorism Department Constable Muhammad Afaq was martyred, and three other personnel were injured during an intelligence-based operation against suspected suicide attackers in Peshawar’s Garhi Sherdad area.

One of the deadliest recent attacks took place on September 18, when a blast followed by an assault at Kohat Police Lines killed 15 police personnel among 23 people. Eight attackers were killed during the subsequent clearance operation. Terrorism is a growing problem for Pakistan, with the number of attacks rising every year since 2022, according to Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED), a global monitoring organisation.

Data from ACLED shows attacks in Pakistan rose nearly fourfold to 2,425 in 2025 from 658 in 2022. The scale of the threat continued to grow in 2026. Two security reports presented to the federal cabinet in October showed that terrorist incidents in K-P had increased by 195 per cent between March 2024 and September 2026.

The reports also found that 73 per cent of attacks recorded in the province during 2026 had targeted police and security personnel, while the use of drones and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) had emerged as growing threats.