Pakistani Taliban denies role in deadly bomb attack on diplomat convoy in Swat

THE Pakistani Taliban on Monday (23) denied carrying out a bomb attack on a police convoy escorting foreign ambassadors that killed a policeman.

Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) said it had “nothing to do with the attack” in the northwest of the country, which also wounded three other officers.

The convoy of more than 10 foreign ambassadors was passing through the picturesque town of Malam Jabba in the Swat district when it was hit by a roadside bomb. Top diplomats from Russia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Portugal, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Iran, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Indonesia and Vietnam were part of the foreign convoy.

In a statement, the Russian embassy said its ambassador was taking part in the trip along with several other ambassadors.

The foreigners were unhurt in the incident and later returned to Islamabad, Pakistan’s foreign office said last Sunday (22).

Police officials said the trip was organised by Islamabad and Swat’s Chamber of Commerce to promote the region’s local industries, including handicrafts and gemstones. Swat – a snowcapped mountain valley split by turquoise waters – is one of Pakistan’s most famed beauty spots, but its reputation has a dark side.

In 2012, Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head by the TTP while campaigning as a schoolgirl for education, activism that later earned her the Nobel Peace Prize.

The Pakistani Taliban historically has roots in Afghanistan.

From 2007 to 2009, they killed thousands of civilians and seized control of several districts before being driven back by the military.

Pakistan has witnessed a dramatic uptick in attacks since the Taliban seized control in 2021 of Kabul, but diplomats are rarely targeted in such attacks.

Islamabad says such offensives are being launched from Afghanistan, which the Taliban authorities deny.