At least nine people, including two traffic police personnel, were killed and around 30 others injured on Tuesday when an explosion struck the Serai Naurang area of Lakki Marwat district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, police and local officials said.
Authorities said the blast occurred in a busy market area near Naurang Bazaar, where a rickshaw was reportedly used to plant explosives. Initial police statements had put the death toll at seven, but later confirmation from district administration raised the number of fatalities to nine. The injured, among them women and children, were shifted to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital in Sarai Naurang, while critically wounded victims were referred to hospitals in Bannu and Peshawar. An emergency was declared at local medical facilities as rescue operations continued.
Police officials identified two of the victims as traffic police personnel, Adil Jan and Rahatullah. Senior police officers, including the deputy inspector general of police, confirmed that a large quantity of explosives had been placed in a vehicle, suggesting a targeted attack. Investigators are examining whether the blast was remotely detonated or carried out as a suicide attack. The area was cordoned off, and forensic teams collected evidence from the site amid widespread damage to shops and vehicles.
Rescue 1122 teams responded immediately following the explosion, while security forces launched a search operation in the surrounding area. Authorities described the attack as an attempt to target civilians and destabilise public order in the region.
The incident comes amid a sharp rise in militant violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and neighbouring Balochistan in recent years. Pakistan has repeatedly accused groups operating from across the Afghan border of involvement in cross-border attacks, a claim denied by the Afghan Taliban authorities.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the blast, calling for an urgent inquiry and reaffirming the government’s resolve to eliminate terrorism. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi also expressed grief and directed authorities to provide full medical and financial support to the victims’ families.