A police convoy was attacked by an improvised explosive device (IED) in the Swat Valley of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday. The convoy safely carried 24 foreign diplomats and their families. In the attack, one policeman was killed and three others were injured.
The diplomats were returning after attending an event organized in partnership with the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) and Swat Chamber of Commerce, Islamabad.
The convoy included diplomats from these countries
The accompanying diplomats include Rwandan High Commissioner Fatou Harimana, Portuguese Ambassador Manuel Federico Pinheiro da Silva, and Tajikistan Ambassador Sharifzada Yusuf Toyle. , Ambassador of Zimbabwe Abu Basutu Titus Meliswa Jonathan, Ambassador of Iran Dr. Reza Amiri Moghadam, Ambassador of Russia Albert Khorev, etc. These include Russia’s ambassadors to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Vietnam and Ethiopia.
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Malakand district deputy inspector general Muhammad Ali Gandapur confirmed that the explosion was caused by a remote-controlled device. He said no foreign diplomats were injured in the explosion. After the explosion, all the diplomats were frightened.
No organization takes responsibility
Before the diplomats were sent to a safe location, we made strict security arrangements and sent 36 police officers to protect the diplomats. However, local officials said ICCI bypassed senior provincial officials normally responsible for diplomatic protocols and contacted Malakand police directly.
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Diplomatic sources revealed that the Turkish and Spanish embassies did not participate in the delegation due to security concerns. The incident is part of a worrying trend of increasing attacks in the region, often linked to the Taliban in Pakistan (TTP). No group has claimed responsibility for this specific attack.
Recently, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial government lifted restrictions on foreign tourists, raising concerns about the potential impact on security in areas previously affected by violence. The attack highlighted Pakistan’s fragile security situation, especially in areas such as Swat, where terrorist activity has increased after the collapse of peace talks.
