2023 Tank district attack
{{Short description|2023 militant attack in Pakistan}}
{{Use Pakistani English|date=December 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}}
On 15 December 2023, militant attacks were launched against the Pakistan Army and local police in Tank, Pakistan. Ansar ul-Islam claimed responsibility for the attack. The attacks occurred at a police station in Tank District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.{{Cite web |title=Police and soldiers killed as more violence flares in northwest Pakistan |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/12/15/two-officers-killed-in-attack-on-police-station-in-northwest-pakistan |access-date=2023-12-16 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}}
{{Infobox civilian attack
| title = 2023 Tank district attack
| location = Tank, Tank District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
| date = 15 December 2023
| partof = Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
| target = Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police
Pakistan Army
| type = Mass shooting; gun battle
| fatalities = 5 Pakistani personnel
5 militants
| injuries = 3 wounded
| perpetrators = Ansar ul-Islam
| dfens = Local police
Pakistan Army
}}
Attack
On the morning of 15 December 2023, militants attacked a police station in Tank district however were repelled by local police, with the militants engaged in a gun battle for hours with the local police.{{Cite web |last=Khan |first=Tahir |date=2023-12-15 |title=3 cops martyred, 5 terrorists killed after police headquarters comes under attack in KP’s Tank City |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1798040 |access-date=2023-12-16 |website=DAWN.COM |language=en}} The attack just come days after the Daraban police station attack, Pakistan's deadliest terrorist attack in 2023. Local police chief Iftikhar Shah stated that 5 police officers and 5 militants were killed in the exchange, with another 3 wounded.{{Cite web |date=2023-12-15 |title=5 officers and 5 militants die after attacks on police office and 2 army posts in northwest Pakistan |url=https://apnews.com/article/pakistan-militants-attacks-police-troops-northwest-25250563d682d33cd5e0c18b7bc50021 |access-date=2023-12-16 |website=AP News |language=en}} In a statement, Shah stated, "Our force on guard engaged them in a gun battle for hours,". Akhtar Hayat, chief of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police announced that the remaining militants involved in the attacks were being searched for, saying, "We are searching for the rest of them, including two who suffered wounds,".{{Cite web |last=Mehsud |first=Saud |date=2023-12-15 |title=Militant attack kills three Pakistani police officers - officials |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/militant-attack-kills-three-pakistani-police-officers-officials-2023-12-15/ |access-date=2023-12-16 |website=Reuters}} On the same day, the Pakistani Taliban launched an attack on a Pakistani army base near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, with 2 security personnel killed in an attack in the Khyber District, and another 7 injured.{{Cite web |title=Five security personnel martyred in KP terror attacks |url=https://www.geo.tv/latest/523082-2-policemen-martyred-as-militants-attack-police-lines-in-kps-tank |access-date=2023-12-16 |website=www.geo.tv |language=en}}
Perpetrators
Ansar ul-Islam, a relatively newly active militant group, claimed responsibility for the attack as their first attack. The attack came days after the Daraban police station attack.
= Surge of attacks =
There has been a surge in terror attacks in Pakistan in 2023 amid a resurgence of the Pakistani Taliban and heightened tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan, with the Pakistani government accusing Afghanistan of harboring militants and with militants using Afghan territory to launch attacks, although the Afghan government denies this.{{Cite web |date=2023-11-01 |title=Focus - Thousands of Afghans leave Pakistan ahead of deportation deadline |url=https://www.france24.com/en/tv-shows/focus/20231101-thousands-of-afghans-leave-pakistan-before-deportation-deadline |access-date=2023-12-16 |website=France 24 |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Dawn.com |date=2023-04-13 |title=Khawaja Asif warns of striking terrorist sanctuaries in Afghanistan |url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1747454 |access-date=2023-12-16 |website=DAWN.COM |language=en}} The attack also comes amidst the mass deportation of Afghans by the Pakistani government.{{Cite web |date=2023-11-03 |title=Pakistan begins mass deportation of Afghan refugees - CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/pakistan-afghanistan-refugees-deportation/ |access-date=2023-12-16 |website=www.cbsnews.com |language=en-US}}
See also
== References ==
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{{coord missing|Pakistan}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tank district attack, 2023}}
Category:Terrorist incidents attributed to Pakistani jihadist groups
Category:2023 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Category:Terrorist incidents in Pakistan in 2023
Category:December 2023 crimes in Asia
Category:Insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Category:Attacks on police stations in 2023