At least sixteen people were killed and dozens more wounded on Friday when a suicide car bomb targeted a police complex mosque in northwest Pakistan.
The explosion occurred during Friday prayers in Kohat, a city situated approximately sixty kilometers southwest of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Provincial police officials confirmed that an assailant rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the facility's outer perimeter before armed accomplices initiated a firefight. The victims included five police officers alongside visiting relatives and local worshippers gathered inside the prayer hall when the ceiling collapsed.
Security forces engaged the attackers in a prolonged shootout, resulting in the death of at least one assailant equipped with an explosive vest. Militant violence targeting law enforcement infrastructure has escalated across Pakistan's border regions in recent months, raising domestic security concerns.