AT LEAST 19 police personnel and civilians have been killed in militant attacks across northwest Pakistan over the past two days, a police official said on Thursday.
The attacks took place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa amid a rise in violence in the border region.
The incidents come days after Afghan and Pakistani forces traded fire along their frontier, with both sides blaming each other for the escalation.
"Over the past 48 hours, 15 police personnel and four civilians have been killed in terrorist incidents across various parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa," a senior police official told AFP.
The official, who is based in the provincial capital, Peshawar, said two police officers were also kidnapped and "are still missing".
Most of the attacks have been claimed by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has increased assaults in Pakistan since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021.
The military said 26 militants were killed in four separate counter operations in the region.
Islamabad has accused Afghanistan's Taliban government of not acting against militant groups that it says use Afghan territory to plan and launch attacks in Pakistan. Kabul has denied the allegation.
Violence has risen in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and neighbouring Balochistan in recent months, with security forces targeted in roadside bombings, ambushes and raids. The incidents have added strain to relations between the two countries.
Pakistan's military has carried out strikes against what it describes as militant hideouts across the border after a series of suicide bombings. The strikes have increased tensions with Kabul.
(With inputs from agencies)
