Pakistan hostages: 33 militants killed at police station

Pakistani security forces possess retaken a police station that was captured, killing all 33 hostage-takers, the protection minister has said.

Islamist militants in the Pakistani Taliban grabbed the centre within the remote north-western Bannu district on Weekend.

Several people, including security officials, were inside during the time.

Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif mentioned all hostages were freed, two specific forces killed, plus 10 to 15 members from the military injured.

The particular Pakistani Taliban — also known as the TTP – confirmed it had been behind the attack, according to a statement reported by local media.

The group walked up its episodes after ending a ceasefire using the government last month. The two sides were locked in conflict for years.

The group emerged within 2007 and had been suppressed by a military operation in 2014, before re-emerging.

It is separate to the Afghan Taliban, though it is often more active because the Afghans agreed a serenity deal with the US in 2020, and took control over the country last year. The 2 groups share a hard-line Islamist ideology.

The hostage incident unfolded in an area near the two countries’ shared border.

Explaining events, Mister Asif told parliament that the 33 militants had links to different groups, and were being held in a counter-terrorism compound.

He said the hostages were taken after a single militant hit a security guard on the head with a brick and seized his weapon.

The militants are said to have requested a safe get out of in return for releasing the particular hostages. A standoff emerged as negotiation efforts failed.

Military commandoes are said to have taken the chance to take back the police station on 12: 30 nearby time (07: 30 GMT) after the hostage-takers found themselves arguing among themselves.

Witnesses of the siege reported explosions and weighty gunfire.

Mr Asif told parliament that “all the terrorists” had been killed, and all the hostages liberated – without specifying what the latter quantity was.

He blamed a “total collapse” of the provincial Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government for your deadly incident.

Nearby schools, businesses and roads remained closed on Wednesday, with police checkpoints in place.

The event came amid a wave of fatal attacks in Pakistan – many of these concentrating on the security forces.

Four policemen were wiped out during a separate strike elsewhere in Bannu on Sunday.