Ten police officers, 18 fighters killed in northwest Pakistan attack

Officers were returning from a mine in the Gumbat area of Kohat district when fighters opened fire on them, authorities say. Gunmen have attacked police officers conducting an operation against illegal gold mining in northwestern Pakistan, with 10 officers and 18 fighters killed in the ensuing violence.

A statement by provincial police in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa said officers were returning from a mine in the Gumbat area of Kohat district on Wednesday when armed men opened fire on them. Earlier, a senior administrative official in Kohat told the AFP news agency that fighters had set two police vehicles on fire during the assault, while two other police vehicles and one private vehicle were missing.

Another senior administrative official in the Orakzai area of Kohat said that 10 fighters belonging to the Pakistan Taliban were killed during a separate operation in the district.