A joint operation was carried out by police and the local civil administration against illegal gold mining in Darabo Kach, near Kohat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

After completing the operation, the police team was returning when attackers opened fire on it, killing 11 personnel of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police. In retaliatory fire, 18 attackers were killed.

According to a spokesperson for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police, the attackers belonged to Fitna al-Khawarij and allegedly targeted the police team at the behest of criminal elements.

Also Read : 11 police personnel, including DSP, martyred in Kohat attack

 The police claimed that organised links exist between criminal mafias and militant elements, with both groups supporting each other in illegal activities.

The police said operations against criminal elements operating with foreign backing and Fitna al-Khawarij would continue, adding that their facilitators would also be brought to justice. According to the police, the martyred personnel belonged to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, particularly Kohat district.