Terrorists Ambush Ambulance in Karak; Three FC Personnel Martyred

By Tahir Shah :

Three personnel of the Federal Constabulary (FC) have been martyred in a coordinated terrorist attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Karak district, officials said on Monday, in the latest violence to rock the northwestern province.

According to Karak District Police Officer Saood Khan, the attack began with a quadcopter drone strike on an FC fort in the Dargah Shaheedan area. At least five personnel were injured in the initial assault.

As the wounded were being transported to a hospital via ambulance, the vehicle was ambushed by terrorists who opened fire and set it ablaze. Three of the injured personnel succumbed to their wounds in the subsequent attack. Two Rescue 1122 workers were also wounded.

Following the attack, security forces launched a search and clearance operation in the area to apprehend the assailants. Officials said the locality has been cleared, while investigations are ongoing.

Political Condemnation

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari condemned the attack, terming it “cowardly and inhumane,” according to a statement issued by the PPP’s media cell.

“Those who opened fire on an ambulance have proven that they reject the teachings of Islam,” Bilawal was quoted as saying. He stressed that “a Muslim cannot even think of harming an animal, let alone a human being, in the holy month of Ramazan”.

Bilawal paid tribute to the martyred personnel and offered condolences to their families.

Rising Violence in KP

Monday’s attack is part of a broader surge in militant violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which has become the epicentre of Pakistan’s terrorism resurgence. According to the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) Annual Security Report 2025, fatalities in the province rose from 1,620 in 2024 to 2,331 in 2025—a 44% year-on-year increase.

The report noted that KP and Balochistan together accounted for more than 96% of all fatalities and nearly 93% of violent incidents nationwide in 2025, with KP being the worst-hit region .

Pakistan has witnessed an increase in cross-border terrorist activity since the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan in 2021, particularly in the provinces sharing a border with Afghanistan .

Recent Strikes

The attack comes just a day after Pakistan carried out intelligence-based airstrikes targeting seven terrorist camps and hideouts belonging to Fitna al Khawarij (FAK), its affiliates, and the Daesh-Khorasan along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. The strikes, conducted in Nangarhar, Paktika, and Khost provinces of Afghanistan, killed more than 80 militants, according to security sources .

Those strikes were a response to a spate of terrorist attacks in KP and Balochistan, including a February 17 suicide attack on a checkpost in Bajaur district that martyred 11 security personnel .

Islamabad has repeatedly called on the Afghan Taliban regime to rein in militant groups operating from its territory, but Kabul has largely remained unresponsive to these appeals

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