Peshawar, Pakistan — At least 14 people were killed and 20 others injured in a suicide bombing near a police station close to the venue of a peace rally in Pakistan’s northwestern Swat district on Sunday, officials said.
According to Swat District Police Officer Muhammad Umar, the explosion occurred near the gate of a police station as a public peace gathering was concluding nearby. The victims included both civilians attending the rally and police personnel deployed to provide security.
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Police said the suicide bomber attempted to enter the police station but was stopped by an officer at the main entrance. The attacker then detonated the explosives he was carrying, causing multiple casualties. At least five police officers were among those killed, according to local police officials.
Bilal Faizi, spokesperson for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial emergency service, said the attacker struck as dozens of participants were chanting anti-militant slogans and demanding peace.
Rescue teams and security personnel rushed to the scene, evacuating the injured to nearby hospitals, while police sealed off the area and launched a search operation. Forensic teams are collecting evidence as investigators work to determine the circumstances surrounding the attack.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the bombing. However, suspicion is likely to fall on the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a militant group separate from but allied with Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers. The TTP has carried out numerous attacks across Pakistan in recent years.
Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned the bombing, expressing condolences to the families of those killed and wishing a speedy recovery to the injured.
The attack occurred in Swat Valley, a region that was once a stronghold of Islamist militants before a major Pakistani military operation in 2007 drove them out and restored government control. Despite improved security over the years, militant violence has resurged in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with authorities frequently blaming TTP militants operating from across the Afghan border. Afghanistan’s Taliban government has repeatedly denied Pakistan’s allegations that it provides sanctuary to the group.
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