Pakistan Security Forces End Standoff After Kohat Mosque Attack

Pakistani security forces ended a 20-hour standoff on Saturday after militants launched a coordinated assault on a police compound and mosque in Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The attack began Friday during prayers when a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a mosque, followed by gunmen storming a facility housing the Counter Terrorism Department and the Special Branch intelligence agency.

The Government of Pakistan reported that the attack killed 21 people and wounded 103 others, including police officers and worshippers. Security forces recovered the bodies of eight attackers, including two who detonated explosives on Saturday morning. While the militant alliance Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan claimed responsibility, Pakistani officials suspect the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Pakistan's Ministry of Information blamed militants with roots in Afghanistan and accused the Afghan Taliban government of providing sanctuary to these groups. The ministry warned that Islamabad would take all necessary measures under international law to protect its sovereignty. In response, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan described the attack as "unjustifiable and condemnable."

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the violence, with Zardari stating that eliminating terrorists is essential for national security. Zulfiqar Hamid, Inspector General of Police for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, described the police force as an "iron wall against terrorism."