12 Pakistani Officers Killed as Militants Attack Police Post in Bannu Using Car Bomb and Drones

A car bombing at a police post on the outskirts of Bannu in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province killed at least 12 officers on May 9, 2026, and was followed by an ambush on police rushing to the scene. Militants first rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the post, then entered the premises and opened fire on officers, an unidentified police official said.

Police sources said the attackers also used drones.

A suicide bomber and several fighters detonated the explosives-laden vehicle near the security post, Zahid Khan, a police official, told The Associated Press. Multiple explosions were heard after the initial detonation and the security post collapsed from the impact of the blast, Zahid Khan said. The installation was destroyed and reduced to rubble.

Images after the attack showed bricks, charred wreckage and mangled vehicles scattered around the area. The bodies of 12 officers had been recovered from the collapsed outpost, police official Sajjad Khan said. Three police personnel were found alive and transferred to the hospital.

Most of the 15 officers who were on duty at the post were feared dead. Nearby civilian areas suffered severe damage due to the blasts and two civilians were wounded, according to Pakistan’s Dawn. A state of emergency was declared in government hospitals in Bannu.

Ambulances from rescue agencies and civil hospitals were dispatched to the scene. The Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen, also known as the Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan, claimed responsibility for the attack. Sajjad Khan said fighting was ongoing and the extent of the damage would only be known once the operation was over.

The worst fighting in years between Pakistan and Afghanistan erupted in February 2026 with Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan. Islamabad said the airstrikes targeted militant strongholds. Fighting has eased since February 2026 with occasional skirmishes but no official ceasefire has been brokered.

Islamabad blames Kabul for harbouring militants who use Afghan soil to plot attacks in Pakistan. The Taliban has denied the allegations and said militancy in Pakistan is an internal problem. The Pakistan Taliban, also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, and allied fighter groups have carried out similar attacks in the past.

The Pakistan Taliban is ideologically aligned with the Taliban in Afghanistan, which seized power in the country in 2021.