As many as eleven labourers were killed in a militant attack in Northwestern Pakistan. Pak security and police officials in Khyber Pakhtunkwa province said a suspected improvised explosive device detonated, tearing through a truck carrying the workers to a construction project in Waziristan, near the troubled Afghan border.
“They were working at an army post that is under construction … an IED exploded under a vehicle carrying the labourers," deputy commissioner of North Waziristan, Rehan Khattak was quoted as saying by Reuters. So far, no group immediately claimed responsibility for the blast.
“Heartbreaking to know about the terrorist attack in North Waziristan which claimed the lives of 11 innocent laborers. Strongly condemn this senseless act of violence and stand in solidarity with the families affected," caretaker Pakistan Prime Minister Anwaar ul Haq Kakar said on Sunday in a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
Heartbreaking to know about the terrorist attack in North Waziristan which claimed the lives of 11 innocent laborers. Strongly condemn this senseless act of violence and stand in solidarity with the families affected.— Anwaar ul Haq Kakar (@anwaar_kakar) August 19, 2023
Pakistan has witnessed an upswing in assaults by Islamist militants since the previous year when a truce between the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and the government collapsed.
Other Islamic groups, including the IS, have likewise asserted accountability for certain attacks. Among these was a significant explosion during a political rally hosted by a religious group in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa last month, resulting in the deaths of 45 people.