His funeral prayers were later offered at Bannu Police Lines with full state honours
The funeral of police constable Saifullah Khan was held with full state honours in Bannu after he was martyred in a gun attack. PHOTO: EXPRESS
DERA ISMAIL KHAN:
A police constable was martyred after unidentified gunmen opened fire in Bannu’s Basiya Khel area on Sunday, with police launching a search operation to arrest the attackers, Bannu’s District Police Officer (DPO) Furqan Bilal confirmed.
Constable Saifullah was targeted in the limits of Basiya Khel police station and sustained serious injuries. He later succumbed to his wounds, police said.
A heavy police contingent reached the scene after being informed of the attack and cordoned off the area. Police also began collecting evidence and searching for the assailants.
Saifullah’s body was shifted to Khalifa Gul Nawaz Teaching Hospital in Bannu Township for legal formalities and a post-mortem examination. Police said the search for the attackers was under way and investigations into the incident were continuing.
His funeral prayers were later offered at Bannu Police Lines with full state honours. DPO Bilal, Assistant Commissioner Headquarters Allah Nawaz Khan, Superintendent of Police (SP) Traffic Ehsanuddin, SP Headquarters Muhammad Nawaz Khan, SP Rural Asad Ali Shah, SP City Sher Hassan Khan, other police officers and personnel, and members of Saifullah’s family attended the funeral.
DPO Bilal laid flowers on the martyr’s coffin, while a smartly turned-out police contingent presented a guard of honour.
Read: Wanted terrorist commander with Rs6m bounty killed in Bannu IBO: K-P police
“Police martyrs are our precious asset and their sacrifices will never go in vain,” Bilal said, adding that the police would “avenge the blood of our martyrs” and continue the fight against terrorism to the fullest extent.
He said Bannu police was like a family and the families of fallen officers were part of that family. “The police force will never leave the families of its martyrs alone,” he said, pledging continued support.
Terrorism has significantly increased in K-P and Balochistan in the past few years. The rise in terrorist activity has led to growing concerns over the security situation in these regions. In response, security forces have been conducting intensive operations to counter the threat, targeting terrorist groups infiltrating from the Afghan border.
The federal government has been consistently raising its voice in international forums against terrorist sanctuaries operating in Afghanistan and using its soil to launch attacks on Pakistan — a development attested to by the United Nations Security Council.
The recent incidents in K-P reflect the continued security challenges faced by the region.
Read More: One terrorist killed, eight detained in Bannu IBO
On July 13, two police officers were killed and two others injured when a suspected remote-controlled improvised explosive device (IED) struck a police armoured personnel carrier during a routine patrol on the Wana-Jandola Road in K-P’s Tank district.
On July 3, unidentified attackers carried out two separate acts of sabotage in Bannu district, targeting a government girls’ middle school and a key link bridge.
Explosives planted inside the Government Girls Middle School in Mama Khel damaged parts of the building, cracking classroom walls and shattering windows and doors.
In a separate incident in the Bachki area of Jani Khel, terrorists planted a drum filled with explosives beneath an important bridge, apparently attempting to disrupt transport links. Security forces and the Bomb Disposal Unit defused the device before it could cause damage.
On June 20, at least seven people were killed when a passenger vehicle was targeted in an IED attack in the region.
