3 killed in attack on Pakistan paramilitary headquarters

A militant attack took place on Monday morning at the Federal Constabulary headquarters in Peshawar. Police said that at around 8am, three militants attempted to enter the compound. One suicide attacker blew himself up at the gate, while the remaining two were shot dead by security forces. Three FC personnel were martyred in the attack, and two others were injured.

Immediately after the incident, a state of emergency was declared at Lady Reading Hospital and Khyber Teaching Hospital, the city’s two main government hospitals. Authorities said all the injured, including civilians, were in stable condition.

The paramilitary force, previously known as the Frontier Constabulary, was recently renamed by the government. The headquarters is located in a densely populated area near a military cantonment.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the attack, praised the timely action of security forces, and prayed for the swift recovery of the injured. President Asif Ali Zardari also condemned the attack and expressed condolences to the families of the martyrs.

This is the second major terrorist attack in Peshawar in recent times. In 2023, a suicide blast inside a mosque at Police Lines killed 84 people. Since the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan withdrew from its ceasefire with the government in November 2022, militant activities have increased in the northwest and in Balochistan.

In September this year, an attempted attack on the FC headquarters in Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa left six soldiers martyred and five militants killed. According to Dawn, Pakistan’s military authorities attributed the incident to an Indian proxy group named “Fitna-al-Khawarij”.